In Choice and Freedom
by Wedjatqi
Summary: ALLIANCE FIC – As Atlantis is set in peaceful talks with the Alliance, John and Teyla continue their secret affair, but an event is about to draw the Elite into a new worrying problem. JT and Other Characters. A sequel to all previous Alliance fics. COMPLETE
1. Haven

**Title:** In Choice and Freedom  
**Chapter: **1 – Haven  
**Part**: 1/?  
**Rating**: M  
**Warnings:** AU world, violence, mention of drug use, and sexual scenes.  
**Disclaimers**: I earn no money from this, and I own no part of the Stargate world, only the characters that I create for myself.  
**Spoilers**: Set in established AU world, set in equivalent time to mid season 3.

**Note:** This fic is a direct sequel to 'Late Night Visitors', and is therefore set after all previous Alliance fics. As a quick summary, chronologically speaking in the AU universe - first there was the 'Iketani Trilogy' (First Contacts, Convergence of Acquaintances, and Dark Shadows Rising), which was followed by 'Interlude' and then 'Late Night Visitors'. It's fun to have finally run full circle from John and Teyla's first meeting to the events of 'Late Night Visitors' (which I wrote first before everything else), and now I can take you all on the ride that takes John and Teyla forward in this AU universe. I really hope you enjoy it.

**Note2: **I have been absent from the writing world for a few months as some might have noticed, as due to personal reasons I was not inclined to write any romantic fic. However, I have not been sitting idle, for I decided to focus on this my next big Alliance fic. It is act one essentially of a new over-riding arc of stories. So think of this fic is only part one, but an entire story in itself. As such, and not wanting to let people down again with posting before I finish a fic, I held back posting until I had finished it completely. At just over 140,000 words it is now complete (I know!) and I'm looking forward to posting it all up quickly. Thank you all for your patience and I hope that people are still supporting our ship despite the years passed since the show disappeared from our screens. At least we have our recognition in the official legacy novels that have been released – which I recommend reading. Much love, Wedjatqi x

000000

**Chapter 1 - Haven**

It was the perfect location, perfectly placed, perfectly designed and implemented. The massive walls and ceiling built solidly in stone and brick, and lined with metal plating would stop anything getting in, forming a haven of safety and secrecy.

Only one large tunnel led off the vast inner chamber, leading to more intimate rooms, and on to the more basic needs of the community – toilets, fresh water supply from the underground well, and two very well stocked kitchens. Everything that was needed all precisely provided.

Roth was very pleased with himself for this. It was just perfect.

Moving up the single tall metal staircase, he stretched out a hand, running it across the closest smooth reinforced wall, inhaling the smell of the newly forged metal and newly dried bonding agents. This place could withstand any attack, any siege, and it was all perfectly done.

Up at the top of the staircase, the main entrance was protected by three inner doors, each hermetically sealable and guarded and booby trapped if necessary. Nothing would get in here, nothing could break into the haven he had created.

A haven free for the true experience, free of all tyranny.

On its grand opening this night, people were flowing into Haven, all specifically invited, all equally invested in this wondrous achievement.

Everyone entering knew him, all smiling and nodding as they passed him on his way up the stairs. He saw the approval and excitement in their eyes. He had fielded so many compliments already this day, but he happily received more. It was just as it should be, perfect.

As the last group passed by him, their heels and boots clinking on the metal steps, he looked out at the vast main chamber below. So many likeminded people all safe and together. Here they could be free. Here they could do what they wished.

Here they could fly free.

"Roth," a voice called to him urgently. "He is not yet here."

With an in breath of patience, Roth turned and proceeded up the last steps to the innermost door that protected the entrance to Haven.

Malden was a less than pleasant man, but he was passionate about his beliefs and he had contacts that had been very useful. He had approached Roth a few months previously, apparently having lost favour with his previous employer, Dantu, after a deal had not been completed. Roth hadn't been entirely encouraged to take Malden in, but he had been with Dantu for many years and had known every single one of his contacts. With the descent of Dreamstation, all the suppliers and handlers had been in a craze to organise new ties and alliances, and Roth had had to step in to provide some much needed order.

Creass was still out there, but Roth had different ideals to that thug who was now apparently in hiding. Roth was focused purely on the supply and use, not on petty criminal acts and financial gain as Creass always had been. Roth had easily acquired many of the connections of Creass' previous business, but had focused them far more ideally. And thus Haven had been created.

And into its welcoming arms, all were welcome that were known, which included the rather anxious and less than fragrant Malden. Roth would have to remind him to use the washing facilities once Haven was securely closed.

"He will be here, Malden. Calm yourself," Roth assured him as he passed through the innermost doors. Ahead the security he had assigned nodded in greeting. "Everyone accounted for?" He asked the closest guard.

"Yes, Roth, all but Khor."

"He will be here," Roth assured them as well. "Set about starting up the music and lights. Tell the kitchens to start handing out the welcoming drinks."

"Yes, Roth," one guard nodded as he lifted his communicator and began to relay the orders.

Roth kept on walking, Malden skittering along behind him, through the next two open doorways and up a short stairwell up to the large thick metal main entrance. One of the two thick doors stood open, cold night air seeping in from outside, making the walls seem colder than nature should allow them to be.

Roth stepped up into the open doorway and took in a deep breath of the fresh alien air. It would be his last for several days, and though he would be happy enough to remain in Haven for that time, he took time to enjoy the cold air filling his lungs.

"Where is Khor?" Malden asked worriedly behind him, his shifting feet seeming more agitated than was appropriate.

"Why are you so anxious?" Roth demanded calmly. "He will be here. It is much for his profit as our plan."

Malden lowered his eyes at the challenge. "I've just heard how good this new Quantum is – they say he's advanced the effects almost twice as much."

"And that will not change in the short time you have to wait until he is here," Roth logically supplied.

Young addicts were always difficult, but there was something about Malden that seemed always especially nervous. He was often seen glancing over his shoulder as if he expected some spectre to descend upon him at any moment. Perhaps he had been hunted by Wraith before now. Roth took another breath and forced himself to be calm and have patience for the young man.

"Why do you not go down and help assist the others to set everything up?" He suggested.

"But, if Khor...?"

"It will make no difference if you are here or further down in the chamber," Roth argued. "He will arrive when he does."

Malden's eyes slid to the dark sky past Roth's shoulders and he nodded. "I'll check to see if everything is ready," he suggested and scurried away down the steps.

Feeling instantly more at ease, Roth stepped out through the main entrance into the night air. The guards stood outside all nodded at him. They were wrapped up in multiple layers against the chilled night of this dead planet, but soon enough they could step inside into the warmth as well.

Roth looked out at the bare landscape beyond Haven. It was an empty world, long since destroyed and mutilated by the Wraith. If there had been a Portal on the planet, it had been taken a very long time ago. There was no way to reach Haven without transport, and he had supplied it all. Out to the right, on a flat plain a good walk from the hidden entrance to Haven, over twenty transport ships were concealed from above. Only one man and one ship was missing still. Roth had no doubt that Khor would arrive, but he seemed to always be one for dramatic entrances.

He was a strange man, but he had what Roth and his community required.

"There," one of the guards called out, indicating up into the dark distance.

A tiny bead of red light blinked in and out as it passed through the thin clouds. Khor was here.

Roth watched as the ship rushed through the sky, dipping down out of the clouds, down towards the parking plain. Khor had insisted on bringing his own ship, but since Roth had seen the ship enough times, he had agreed. Khor had as much to enjoy and benefit from with Haven as he did.

Khor's small black ship slowed, turned, and dropped vertically down to the plain. Roth watched the ship lower to the pale ground, saw the lights shut down and darkness swallow the ship as its pilot rolled it forward under the camouflaged area.

"Tell them he is here," Roth ordered one of the guards, who turned and raced away inside, his own excitement plain. Moments later a roar of delight echoed up from the depths of Haven, and Roth smiled. Music, loud and rampant, began, rumbling up from the chamber, voices rising in celebration of life and freedom.

One of the guards stepped closer. "I've heard that his Quantum is amazing. It sets the soul free like nothing else."

"So I have heard," Roth replied. He was looking forward to trying the new version of Quantum as much as the others, but everything had its time, and first he needed to ensure all was well. He would make certain Haven's community were safely sealed inside and then he would allow himself to slip into that altered state, so wondrous, so freeing...

He cleared his throat, the anticipation like a living creature inside his chest, demanding its freedom, crying out for the moment of connection with everything. If Khor's latest version of Quantum really was as amazing as everyone had heard...

With a forceful push of will, Roth forced his thoughts away from what was to come and instead focused on Khor's approach from the plain. He realised that more time had passed than he had been aware, which meant that his own need was growing far too fast. It just had been too many days since he had had time to take a dose of Quantum, but now, all his plans were coming to fruition, all perfection personified, and then he could enjoy his freedom.

The guards moving anxiously and excitedly beside him, Roth watched Khor's form emerge from the shadows. He had his ever present assistant with him, a bland bald man, who held a large metal box. The new Quantum.

Subtly wiping his now sweating palms against his sides, Roth stepped forward to meet Khor.

He was a tall and quiet man. He had rarely ever shown any emotion that Roth had seen during any of their meetings. Apparently, he had been involved with Quantum supply for some time, but it had only been in the absence of Creass, that Khor had stepped forward as a major supplier outside the Alliance border. No one knew where he came from, from which world he was borne, but then that wasn't anything new in their line of business.

However, there was something silently intimidating about Khor, with his direct emotionless stare. Roth wondered if Khor ever took his own Quantum, because it was difficult to imagine the man lost in the wonder and endless peace of the drug.

"Welcome, Khor," Roth greeted him as they met in the open space outside Haven. "Welcome to Haven."

Khor looked beyond him towards the entrance and his lips lifted in something close to a smile. "So I see. I have the very best and latest of my creations here." He indicated the metal box the other man held as if its weight was nothing. "Shall we begin?"

Roth smiled. "Yes, welcome Khor. Those inside have heard much of your new adaptations and are looking forward to the experience."

Khor nodded and moved forward, his assistant at his elbow, into the entrance to Haven. "You said to bring enough for at least six hundred."

"Yes," Roth replied as he worked to keep up with Khor's long strides down the stairs and through the inner doors.

The music was pounding loud in here, vibrating off the solid metal lined walls, and it felt as if they were descending into his dream made real. Perfection was almost here.

Roth turned and looked up towards the guards behind him. "Lock it up," he ordered and the loud clang of the main door slammed shut up the steps.

Feeling as if his chest was vibrating with his excitement, Roth hurried to catch up with Khor as he passed through the last of the inner doors and out onto the landing overlooking the vast chamber below. It was filled with music, light, and voices, and as they saw Khor's arrival, the loudest cheer Roth had ever heard rose up, echoing throughout Haven.

It was perfection indeed.

0000

The auditorium was beautiful. The high ceiling decorated in sweeping blues and greens, interspersed with spiralling browns. A decor Teyla could easily identify as very Ancestor. Though she saw much of Ancestor technology in her life, Atlantis was something very unique. An entire city built by the Ancestors, in which they had lived, and died. To stand here in their city felt as if she could be standing in the days of the Ancestors themselves.

There was something enticing, relaxing, and inspiring about this ancient city. It had survived so many thousands of years and now was the focus of a vital new move towards possible unity for this galaxy. It was almost enough to make her begin to believe, as her father and people did, that the Ancestors still watched over those they had left behind.

If any day their influence was needed again in this city, it was now.

The auditorium was fully packed, but all eyes were focused on the central tables. It had been three months of planning, designing, convincing and even threatening, to fill those tables and the seats behind them.

The High Council had resisted this meeting, had preferred to stand broken and undecided on their stance with Atlantis. Too many in their numbers saw Atlantis as a threat, or as a very real enemy who had been responsible for the assassination of one of their number. Despite evidence, assurance, and Atlantis' own peaceful trade agreements with four major systems within the Alliance, those factions held tight to their beliefs. Most days, Teyla would agree that people could believe what they wished, but when those beliefs began to harm all those within the Alliance, it had been time for the Military Council to force things with the High Council.

It had been a calculated risk, and one that would likely have consequences she could not yet predict, but the pressure had succeeded in bringing about this meeting.

A meeting to formally agree a non-aggression treaty between the Alliance and Atlantis.

The treaty, which she and father had helped to draft, was in itself simple and direct enough that there should not have been too much of a problem getting all parties to agree. However, life was never simple.

Teyla looked away from the political debating between the central tables, to the encircling observers. Half were a mix of ambassadors and observers from the Alliance, but the other half were a far more desperate and angry looking group. Hallow and malnourished eyes looked out from the outskirts of the other side of the auditorium, as they listened to the possible future of their worlds. Atlantis had taken in a vast number of refugees over the last few months, to the point where they were struggling to supply basic food for them. Apparently, there were several worlds far beyond the Alliance border which had agreed to take in some of the refugees, but those agreements often hinged on trade and protection agreements with Atlantis.

She knew from John that most of those possible refugee agreements would also hinge on the outcome of this treaty. Many of the worlds who would take in those displaced by the Wraith's ravenous and vicious clearing of entire solar systems just beyond the Alliance's expanding border, were adamant that they must in turn be protected from the Alliance.

Fear of the Alliance appeared to be as strong as the fear of the Wraith these days, which worried Teyla greatly, but not as much as the Wraith's renewed power these last few months. It appeared that a large majority of the remaining Hives had organised an alliance of their own, and were systematically working to surround the Alliance's borders with their own strip of territory, working to hem them in. The tactic was working as well, for several systems had been entirely seeded with space mines, patrolled by Wraith cruisers and Hives. The populations of entire worlds beyond the border had disappeared to feed such a massive Wraith undertaking, and Teyla knew that allies outside that Wraith border would be vital. If Atlantis, and perhaps hopefully the Travellers eventually as well, could attack the Wraith at their back as the Alliance attacked the front, then there was every chance that the Wraith could be broken.

Such had been the Military Council's argument to the High Council over this meeting with Atlantis. It would be an easy and cheap price to have peace with a potentially powerful ally, but it seemed that she and her fellow warriors had not factored in pride and suspicion.

John had reminded her only last night that not everyone thought as Elite did, as any warrior did. Politicians did not care about honour. They did not worry over saving lives the same way that a warrior did. They thought differently, often planning their next move years ahead that would gain them and their people a more stable and rich standing.

John had been far closer to the truth than he had realised. For the Alliance was not only facing difficulties at the outskirts of its borders, but also within. For Atlantis was not the only cause for disagreement between the most powerful in the Alliance. Cracks were forming in long held agreements. Those who had established the first binding agreements that had originally formed the Alliance were no longer in charge. These days, those in power had spent most of their lives in peace, and the danger of the Wraith was only a distant childhood memory. Now the bonds between systems and planets were not formed through friendship and shared war wounds. Those in power did not know those they dealt with so well, their own worlds growing rapidly in population size and demand. They kept their own counsel, and the distribution of wealth, medical care, technology and food throughout the massive and densely populated Alliance was far from equal. Words of revolution against governments and the High Council were heard more than ever before.

Only last night she had shared as much with John over the situation with the Genii. They had been one of the strongest factions within the Alliance, having been one of the first to stand up to the Wraith successfully. They were strong, military-minded and full of pride, but their government had begun to weaken. For too many years, the supreme Leader of the Genii and his closest advisors had focused on amassing their own personal status and wealth, so that now their own people had begun to rebel. She had confided to John that the outcome of this non-aggression treaty would likely turn the tide either way for the Genii. The Genii people saw Atlantis as a valuable resource, for their own benefit, and if their ruling body did not see that resource secured then a revolution would likely follow.

It seemed that one particular Genii had sought to push for that revolution faster though. She had not heard his name before, and that concerned her.

Acastus Kolya.

He had apparently been a military commander who had led an invasion into Atlantis during a particularly weak moment for the city. John and his people had thwarted the attack and the Genii had immediately disowned any knowledge of Kolya's actions. John had thought Kolya dead, having shot him in the chest in the last instance of Kolya's escape from the city, but last night, it had emerged that John had been mistaken.

For Kolya had attempted to assassinate John.

Just the thought of it, of the memory of that man holding a gun up at John's face, it angered her in a way that had her break her eyes away from the full auditorium.

If she had not been sleeping in John's quarters last night...

The assassin had slipped into the room when John had gone to the bathroom in the middle of the night, and as such John had been taken completely by surprise when he had emerged from the bathroom to find a gun pointed at him.

Having woken when John had left the bed, she had seen the assassin slip in from the balcony. She had chosen her moment carefully, not wanting to draw attention to her and lose her moment of surprise.

If she had not agreed to stay the night with John last night, he would likely have been killed - assassinated by this Kolya out of revenge and political sabotage.

John had joked the event off after the would-be assassin had been removed by Atlantis personnel, but Teyla had not been able to brush aside such an event.

John had begun to be very important to her.

These last few months had been filled with almost weekly interactions with him on Tjaru, as he, Father and Mr Woolsey had worked to draft the non-aggression treaty, and forge stronger bonds for Atlantis with others within the Alliance. Truthfully speaking, she had not needed to be as present on Tjaru as she had been, but since she had taken over much of the Elite representative's tasks with Nalla on the Military Council, she had had excuse enough to stay on Tjaru so frequently recently.

She had not intended to spend so much time with John, to happen to always been in Tjaru on the two days she knew Atlantis visited Athos. To the outside, it hopefully had appeared that she and John had simply been working together, and forging a respectful friendship. With Halling and Si also occasionally being in Tjaru to talk with John and others from Atlantis, it seemed innocent enough. News of the Elite's favour towards Atlantis had begun to spread and as such there had been a surprising number of visitors to Tjaru requesting to meet those from Atlantis.

And such, with her own duties and the presence of Atlantis, there were plenty of valid and important reasons why her presence in Tjaru had been so frequent.

It had had nothing to do with her desire to see John so much. With the overwhelming urge she had to pull him to her quarters each time she saw him, to tear his clothes from his body and lie with him for as long as they could snatch time without suspicion.

What had started as an agreement to share only one afternoon together had slipped into one more evening when they had accidently met on Pelydr. Only they had then seen each other a few days later while she had been on Athos, overseeing the installation of Elkaska's gift to Zabetha and Rhakshar. She and John had found themselves left alone together, as both Father and Mr Woolsey had hoped they would share military information with each other. It had been an opportunity that had been difficult to cast aside. She had led him to her quarters and had barely shut the door before they had been upon each other. It had started a pattern of interactions that continued to this day.

When with others, they were in control, carefully phrasing questions and answers, and working towards a common goal of peace between the Alliance and Atlantis. When they were alone however, she could not keep her hands off him, and he seemed to share the same desperate passion. Some days they had had barely ten minutes alone together, but never were they wasted minutes.

And a few times they had almost been caught, but for now their ongoing affair remained secret. Last night's assassination attempt appeared to confirm that, and it had saved John's life.

Her eyes slid to where he now sat in the auditorium. He was seated beside Mr Woolsey and Mr Faxon, the two ambassadors of Atlantis leading their side's part in the long-winded negotiations. The three of them had worked well together so far, arguing calmly and logically.

A sudden heavy sigh to her left drew Teyla's attention from John's handsome profile.

"It appears that this will not be resolved today," Kari muttered with no small amount of boredom in her voice. "Can we not just force the High Council to sign the treaty?"

Teyla smiled at the whispered suggestion from her fellow Elite warrior. "I do not think that will help matters," Teyla replied quietly. Though it certainly would make life so much easier if the Elite could do just that.

Kari sighed again and pulled out her electronic pad. "It would get us out of here quicker."

Teyla nodded, but inwardly she had no complaints at staying in Atlantis a further night.

She had oddly enjoyed sleeping in John's bed last night. Though they had shared many enjoyable hours over the last few months in bed together, last night had been the first and only time she had spent the entire night with him. Despite the rude interruption of the would-be assassin, she had enjoyed last night. She had found great pleasure from the simple sound of John's steady soft breathing beside her, and the weight of his arm draped over her as he slept. She had even allowed him to lie over her briefly while they had kissed and stroked one another.

Last night had been dramatic and exciting in equal measures - she wondered what tonight would bring.

"Nalla has sent a data-burst through the Atlantis Portal," Kari reported.

Teyla looked round to her colleague, the faint blue light of the pad glowing up across Kari's narrow features. She was a strong and stoic Elite warrior, though perhaps rather quick to form an opinion, but Teyla greatly valued her by her side. Even in such a boring situation as watching over the treaty negotiations. The Elite had agreed among themselves that the Elite would not be directly involved in the treaty talks, but that they would be present. It was important that the Elite be seen as _part_ of the Military Council and Military force, but not in a way that might place their own pressure on the High Council. Though many had suggested the Elite could be more effective in changing policy, since they had the support of almost the entire population of the Alliance, the Elite remained a non-political group. At least for now.

"Anything of interest?" Teyla asked Kari, feeling her own boredom and hoping for some distraction. There was only so long and frequently she could watch John without someone perhaps noticing. She had become rather skilled at managing how often she looked at him and for how long, all while controlling her expression.

"Nothing yet on the border battles, they are all still ongoing from this morning. Mmm this is of interest," Kari pondered, "there was a riot this morning on Aria."

Teyla snapped her head back round from looking at John, who's voice had lifted above the others. "On Aria?"

The High Council met on Aria. It was considered the unofficial centre of the Alliance, having been the first world protected by the emerging Elite and Alliance Military back when the Alliance had been first formed. It was a highly advanced and peaceful planet, with the most heightened security as expected for the residence of the High Council.

"Nalla reports it was mostly peaceful, though several ringleaders were arrested for aggressive incitement."

"What were they protesting about?" Teyla asked.

Kari frowned in the light of her pad. "They were mostly of the religious idea that Atlantis should be restored to those of this galaxy. The ringleaders were advocating that the High Council take the city by force."

Teyla sighed and frowned up towards the beautifully decorated ceiling of the auditorium.

"And it seems that Oneakka is continuing his attempt to clean the galaxy of drug dealers until he finds Creass," Kari added, some humour now apparent in her voice.

Teyla looked back to her. "What did he do this time?"

"Apparently he closed down an entire sector of the Western City on Litan. There are fifteen store owners in Enforcement custody and a massive amount of rose grain was set alight."

"Is he attempting to save Litan from the mulling affects of rose beer?" Teyla asked, amused despite herself.

Kari smiled. "Apparently the smoke could be seen all the way to the Portal."

"I imagine the Western City will smell like burnt rose grain for many weeks."

"He did manage to find someone who used to trade out of Dreamstation, but then there were many of them," Kari continued. She sighed as she lowered the pad. "We should have sent him out to the outer Lantana battle with Seifer."

"You know as well as I do that nothing in this universe will redirect Oneakka when he is set on course," Teyla replied, her gaze sliding back to John, having deemed enough time had passed until she could look at him again.

Beside him, Mr Woolsey was rubbing his forehead with what appeared to be exhausted impatience. She had not seen the politician pushed to that point before. She tuned into what was being said.

"...Atlantis cannot withhold territory from us," Eydis was saying, quite loudly. He was the negotiator assigned by the noticeably absent High Council, "you have no rights. You are not even of this galaxy!" It was an argument that had been used frequently against Atlantis over the last two days.

"If we have no right over unclaimed territory, then neither should your people," Ambassador Faxon replied calmly. He had been assigned, along with Mr Woolsey, by Earth to lead the Atlantis side of the negotiations over the treaty. He seemed a very able and approachable man. He also had a strong will, which was serving him well.

"This is _our_ galaxy," Eydis replied.

"And that was our planet!" A man shouted from the side of the room. "You storm in and take over _our_ world." He was one of the many refugees watching the political debate.

Eydis glanced towards the man with an expression horribly close to disgust. "You have asked Atlantis to speak for you, so there must be no interaction from the walls."

Ambassador Faxon held his hand up to the angry man behind his table, silently asking for calm. The refugees in the room were representatives of the many others filling Atlantis' east pier. They likely had been world and group leaders, and as such had been invited by Atlantis to be present in the auditorium to observe and give evidence. It had been a calculated and wise move by Atlantis, for by putting so many worlds and faces on display for the Alliance to see, it was no longer just a political theoretical debate solely against Atlantis. Today's choices impacted real lives for residents of this galaxy.

"They understand, Ambassador," Faxon replied to Edyis. "You can understand that this is a difficult issue for them."

"For all of us," another one of the refugee leaders proclaimed from his seat and that side of the auditorium exploded into shouts and cheers.

Faxon held his hands up again for quiet, but silence only came many minutes later once the refugee leaders themselves had calmed and asked for quiet among their own people.

"Mr Eydis," Faxon began. "Please understand that these worlds that you invade, do not always want your protection."

"Yet they benefit from it," Eydis replied. "Once within the Alliance territory, they will be protected constantly from the Wraith. Alliance warriors will shed their breath and blood for them, to keep them alive."

"No one is arguing that the Alliance aren't doing a great job out there," John put in. "But, what's the point if you're not going to respect the people you're protecting?"

"They're building an Empire that is what they're doing, they wish to rule us all," one of the watching refugees shouted and the room filled with shouts once more.

"We are definitely not going to get out of here today," Kari sighed.

"No, it does not appear that we are," Teyla agreed.

A door slid open to the left and she and Kari both looked round to see that Halling had entered.

"Thank Hastos and Sythus," Kari muttered as she moved to meet her relief. Halling exchanged some words with her that made him smile.

Teyla looked back to the angry faces in the auditorium. She was not concerned though. These people were not ready for violence, they were just expressing their opinion. She suspected that Colonel Carter would have spoken with the refugee leaders about such matters. It would do no good to send in the most angry and violent of those displaced by the Alliance. Peace was the objective of these negotiations.

"It appears to be the same here as it was this morning," Halling stated as he arrived at her side.

"Indeed it is," Teyla agreed as she scanned the faces of those watching from the Alliance side. "However, I believe that opinions are slowly shifting." There were far more thoughtful expressions to be seen there than as angry and worried as yesterday.

Halling nodded beside her and they fell into silence as they listened to Eydis begin again on the subject of unclaimed territory.

"I spent some time sparring with several of the Marines last night," Halling said quietly after a while.

Teyla smiled. "Did you enjoy yourself?"

"It was very informative," Halling replied, his eyes forward. "I attempted to visit you afterwards to discuss what I had learnt."

Teyla stiffened, but she kept her gaze forward, working to keep her shoulders relaxed.

"You were not in the guest quarters that were assigned to you," Halling finished.

"I could not sleep and went for a walk," Teyla supplied, hating lying to her friend, though it was not entirely a lie. She and John had walked, first, for he had wanted to show her some of his favourite places in the city.

"With Major Sheppard?" Halling asked.

She made sure not to look in John's direction as she replied. "For some of my walk."

"Be careful, Teyla," Halling warned quietly but insistently, surprising her.

She felt a rush of annoyance and almost anger at her friend's words. Never had she involved herself in Halling's personal life. Even back when he and Oneakka had been feuding over the same woman, actually breaking into a fight during one sparring session. She clenched her jaw tightly, holding back the words she wished to say to him. She reminded herself that Halling was her friend and just concerned - he wasn't questioning her judgement. However, that did not mean she wished to discuss this with him.

She glanced at him. "A Genii attempted to assassinate John last night," she informed him.

"I know," Halling replied, "I have just questioned the man. He said that a woman saved Major Sheppard."

Teyla looked away, back to the negotiations.

"He did not see your face though."

Teyla glanced at him again. "My personal relationships are my own, Halling," she stated as quietly as he had.

"I know that, Teyla," Halling replied. "But in this, there could be political and lasting consequences."

Teyla scoffed at the suggestion as she looked away, making light of the argument, though she had considered the same frequently. "No one will care with whom I share a bed."

"Would you have said the same of Iketani?" Halling asked.

Teyla snapped her head round, staring up at her friend. "Are you comparing my actions to that traitor?" She asked quietly, shocked and insulted. How could Halling of all people say such a thing?

Halling held up his hands, his eyes sliding away from hers to the room around them and then back. "Of course not, Teyla. But, others might."

Teyla gestured towards the rest of the busy room. "They will become allies."

"Not yet," Halling replied. "And a non-aggression treaty is not the same as an alliance."

"You know these people are trustworthy," Teyla insisted.

"For now, but what if a day comes when he must choose between his people and you?" Halling pushed. "Do you think he will abandon all he knows? Would you?"

"It will never come to such a decision, Halling," Teyla replied. "We both have our allegiances, and nothing will change that."

Halling stared at her. "I am only concerned-"

"I appreciate your concern," she interrupted as she turned back towards the rest of the room, "but it is unnecessary. We both understand the nature of what we share. It is for the short-term, and as such, why should I not enjoy what others do?" She demanded, looking up at Halling again. "I know you have had relationships with women from outside military ranks, Si has his many women on Athos - so is it only male Elite you think are able to have intimate relationships?"

Halling frowned at her. She had not wanted to turn the discussion into an argument, but she felt angry with him and wanted to hurt him back a little. It was unfair of him to question her like this.

"You know I do not think that way," Halling argued. "I am only looking out for your wellbeing-"

"I do not need you to," she replied sharply. He was worse than her father, for Father at least had made no indication that he knew that anything existed but friendship between her and John. Even if he suspected otherwise. But Halling it appeared did not trust her judgement and professionalism when it came to an affair of her own.

Silence fell between them like a thick wall of pressure.

A sliver of guilt slid through her, but she squashed it. For how many years had she witnessed her fellow Elite enjoy short-lived affairs, heard of the consequences and teasing afterwards. Why was she any different? Was she not allowed such distractions like everyone else?

"I am not questioning your personal choices," Halling said quietly. "I only question that it is _him_."

Teyla's gaze locked onto John.

"He may one day be your enemy, Teyla. That is the only reason why I am saying this."

"And Oneakka was not your enemy for a while?" She asked, looking up at him.

"That was different," Halling replied, and there was a touch of a self-admonishing smile to his lips.

"Of course, he was not your lover," she replied, humour of her own slipping into the comment despite her still annoyed nerves.

Halling made a protesting noise and looked away. "I suppose I deserved that mental image."

Teyla smiled tightly again, her heart still beating strangely fast at their disagreement. She realised had reacted quite dramatically.

She looked back to John.

It was just a short-lived affair. They both knew that.

Why should she not enjoy him while she could?

"It was different with the disagreement between Oneakka and myself," Halling said thoughtfully next to her. "We are like brothers, and, despite what happened and may happen in our lives, I will always love him."

Halling's last words echoing through her, Teyla watched John talking, his handsome face lit with determination as he argued hard and fast for his people.

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TBC


	2. Belsa

**Note:** A meaty chapter today, still in the opening sequences of this new long fic. I should hopefully be able to post another chapter tomorrow.

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**Chapter 2 - Belsa**

The wig itched. Squeezing her fingers under the red scarf to the wig beneath, she scratched through the thin weave as best she could. It was an uncomfortable disguise, but it was necessary.

It was dry on Belsa, the heat of the long summer's days stored and contained within the tightly packed brick buildings of the confining town walls. The heat emanated up through the soles of her thin shoes and up under the wide black skirt that was every Belsan woman's choice of clothing on the third day of each second week. The dark material seemed designed to absorb as much heat as it could and then contain in the rest around her legs, making her skin feel extra sensitive under the additional three Belsan layered colourful shirts above the skirt, and the thick scarf wrapped around the itchy wig. If that wasn't bad enough, the dry summer days appeared to be coming to a close today, for thick heavy clouds, as dark as a deep well, were slowly sliding over the town. The humidity was building, the contained heat of the brick walls and dry ground mixing with the growing moisture in the air into create a heavy oppressive pressure that made Seeal's day just that much worse.

She hated the cold, but she could handle it, cold she was made to withstand, but this oppressive humid heat bothered her. If she could wear a single layer and have her own long hair tied up, she might have been able to enjoy the bustle of Belsa without feeling the need to punch every man that brushed up against her, pretending it to be accidental. Men ruled Belsa with an iron grip, controlling everything from hair styles to which colour clothing everyone should wear on a particular day. Women struggled here in every way, including looking after their families in the tight confining towns of this world, but especially so in being respected and given space.

Another man, half Seeal's size, bumped his side into her, leering as he went. He had the worse teeth she had ever seen and clearly needed a few of them removing from his mouth. She would have been happy to assist, but currently she needed to play the role of a Belsan woman, simply out in the streets carrying her daily washing load. So, against every fibre of her being, Seeal lowered her eyes and rounded her shoulders as if timid. The man sniggered and muttered something Seeal decided not to listen to or else forget her disguise and teach the man some manners.

She had been a foul mood before she had gotten to Belsa, having been beckoned here by the curt order Robiah, an Alliance Investigator, had sent her. Her time was precious when she was away from her duties from looking after Creass' security and keeping him alive, which ironically seemed to be harder now that he had been chased off Dreamstation.

She had left the Lalawani base earlier today and first gone to another world, where she had sat with a cup of lavender grass tea and debated whether she should just ignore Robiah's summons. It had been months since she had passed him any information, and she had hoped that she was simply no longer of interest to him. However, it seemed her hopes were misplaced. She should know better than to place any power in 'wishing' for something.

So, after some thought, which had included the decision to never again have another cup of lavender grass tea, she had donned her Belsan disguise and come here to meet Robiah. However, she was ensuring her progress through the busy town streets was slow enough to make Robiah wait.

Above, the pressure of the clouds was noticeably increasing, promising one mammoth rainstorm. Belsa's walls held evidence of such previous storms; dried rivulets of previous rainfall cut like artwork down the freestanding walls which divided up the districts of the town.

As she walked, eyes mostly focused downward, she planned the perfect response to Robiah's likely questions. He would especially want to know where Creass was now based after leaving Dreamstation.

Creass had not been the same since that day. Unlike everyone else who had worked on Dreamstation, Creass had never left the station in the ten years since it's construction. The walls of the station had formed his own kingdom, neutral ground that so much scum and villainy had craved and paid to use, and he had been the king, drinking in their money as they spent it all at the gambling tables and with the prostitutes in the lower levels. He had ruled happily, and she had been his security lead, keeping strict order and ensuring that none of the scum killed each other or put a hole in the hull of the station. It had been hard work, but she had kept order. There had in fact been very few murders on the station in ten years, and when one had been committed she had dealt with it. Immediately and personally. She had kept order, kept them all under control.

Until the day that Elite had arrived on the station.

Their presence had ruined Creass entirely, and without having actually done anything to him directly. His neutral ground had been tainted and the majority of his clients had disappeared into the woodwork. Within days he had had to pack up and leave, desperate to distance himself from the infection of the Elite and in hopes of setting up his business anew.

Of course that was never going to happen now, but he thought he could.

It had all been because of Iketani. Seeal had known from the first moment she had seen the former Elite traitor that she was going to be the worst form of trouble that had ever set foot on Dreamstation, and that was saying something. Of course, in Seeal's opinion, a five year old child could have seen that, but not Creass. He had welcomed her to use the station, against Seeal's advice, but then he had been thinking with his smaller brain, the one which had had him tangling up in Iketani' sheets like a lamb ready to be slaughtered.

And slaughter him she had, just by association.

However, Creass didn't know the true irony of that for Seeal. For it had actually been her own actions that had drawn the Elite to the station. During her last stay on Dreamstation, Iketani had been different to Seeal's experienced eye, and she had sensed the noose tightening around the woman. When several well known intermediaries had been brought in through a third party, Seeal had known the ex-Elite had been up to something big and needed to be stopped. Not prepared to do it herself, Seeal had instead made sure to whisper just the right comment near the right ears so ensure that Iketani' name and location would be discovered. However, she had not expected the Elite themselves to arrive only days later, and without Iketani present on the station, their full attention had been on Creass alone.

So, ironically it had been her own act that had brought about her own eviction from her home of ten years. And Creass had lost his kingdom to rule, which had left him lost and beginning to make some truly stupid choices in his attempt to wrestle some power back for himself.

It was clear to Seeal that he was in trouble and was headed in a very dangerous direction, for now instead of watching over criminal activity, he was now trying to involve himself in it.

An instinct built from a lifetime of harsh experience whispered to Seeal that soon she would have to jump ship away from Creass.

However, she did not like the idea of abandoning him to the predators she knew he would likely fall to without her protection. Not that he had ever truly listened to her opinion on things, argued and discussed issues with her maybe, but he had still gone ahead and done exactly what he had wanted to anyway. He had made a lifetime of stupid choices, but he was honest in his blunt approach to life and he had offered her the job on Dreamstation ten years ago when she had needed it most. That fact had bred a certain kind of loyalty in her for him. It wasn't really affection, but it was a very real gratitude that had kept her from sharing anything about him with Robiah when he had arrived in her life with his blackmailing.

That would likely have to end soon as well, she thought gratefully, for if she was to be leaving Creass, then her use to Robiah would come to an end. She would just have to make sure that she disappeared in the right way so as to slip well out of Robiah's reach. She would need time to organise that, to think of the best means to start afresh, not that she hadn't had to do that more than once already in her life.

But for now, she would meet with Robiah, see what he wanted, and secretly plan her exit strategy. Which was why she was here on Belsa, carrying a washing basket that was annoyingly light in her hands. It was missing the most vital ingredient she wanted in amongst the sheets – a decent weapon. However, if she was stopped and searched for any reason, the consequences of being found with a weapon, as a woman on Belsa, would not make anyone happy at the outcome. It was against her nature to be so defenceless, but it had been a necessary decision each time she had met with Robiah on this planet.

The upper district ahead of her, she lowered her head a fraction more, moving slowly as if the basket were weighing her down and her life even more so. People didn't realise how much they noticed about others besides than their clothes and faces, for so much more was necessary to consider when hiding behind a disguise. People naturally noticed how a person holds their head and body, how they walk and even how they smell. She had learnt that lesson many long years ago, surviving on the streets with only her wits to find food.

The tight twisting lanes of the upper district bustled with people, into which she flowed, just an apparent natural part of the whole. Until, she spied the building where Robiah would be waiting, so she broke from the crowd and wandered to the back doorway to the house as if it were her own home. For effect, she even took time to brush her shoes clear of dust and dirt before continuing on inside.

She had no idea how Robiah had acquired use of this home, though it was likely that he had manipulated its use from its owner with some blackmail and threats. He was good at that.

As she had predicted, he was already here, sat on the far side of a small table, cutting up a kita fruit with a small knife. A large red and green table cloth had been draped over the tabletop, making it near impossible for her to see if he had any other weapons on his lap or at his hip.

"Finally," Robiah said with an annoying mix of judgement and sarcasm.

It was always particularly annoying to hear your own techniques used against you.

She set the washing basket down on the floor and slowly slid onto the empty bench set on the closest side of the table, settling directly opposite him.

He set aside the knife and the kita fruit without eating any of it, and interlinked his fingers, his forearms resting on the tabletop. It gratified her to see that there was a small pool of sticky kita juice under one of his bare arms. It was the little things in life that amused her. Little else did.

She waited for him to begin.

He lifted his eyebrows, as if waiting for her to speak first.

She could wait all day.

Robiah sighed, as if she were some difficult child and not five years his senior. She had done her research on him long ago. He had been an ordinary and uninspiring boy born in the Alliance. He had done a small stint in the Military, but had not taken to the violence, from what she had heard, and had ended up in the Alliance's Investigation Division. There he had flourished, racing up through the ranks with one of the highest conviction rates. Now he was in his late twenties and held himself like he was twenty years older. His eyes were sharp and insightful, but he was still a young man and in love with his own success.

"I haven't seen you in months," he began, as if this were some social call. "How are you doing?"

"By which you mean you want to know where Creass has moved his base of operations," Seeal translated. "I made it clear at the start of our agreement that I will not give you any information on him."

"You haven't given me any information in some time, Seeal."

"You haven't asked for any," she countered.

"True, but then no one has been entirely sure under which rock Creass had scurried."

She waited, punishing him for still thinking he could try to bait her into an emotional reaction. It was as if he still didn't believe his own research on her.

"I was hoping," he continued, his brown eyes sharp above his very straight nose, "that you would now be ready to supply me with some new information. Now that you and Creass have settled under your new rock happily."

"Hardly happily," she replied, giving him something. "Creass is far from pleased at having to abandon Dreamstation."

Robiah let out an amused breath, pleased at the news, or perhaps that she had given it. He was very easy to manipulate that way.

"I imagine he has lost a lot of business."

"Some," Seeal replied simply, knowing that Robiah probably already knew how much. After all he was an Investigator.

Robiah waited again. She waited longer.

He sighed and sat back. His right forearm came away from the tablecloth with a sticky pull. She made sure not to smile at that, only enjoyed it silently.

"You are going to have to give me _something_, Seeal."

"Maybe there is nothing to give," she countered. "Maybe Creass spends all his days lost in alcoholic stupor, lamenting the loss of his beloved business and home on Dreamstation that Elite boots ruined."

"Mmm and that's all it took too," Robiah replied with a smile, "just three pairs of Elite boots from what I heard. They were there barely an hour."

For show she replied, "Did you have anything to do with that by any chance?"

He made a show of being surprised and insulted by her insinuation. "Of course not. We had an agreement," he replied, leaning forward again, but kept his sticky right arm off the tabletop this time. "You don't tell secrets about Creass, and I don't tell your secrets."

Seeal clenched her teeth tightly together.

"But, Creass' associates," he continued, "they've always been another matter."

Which was the truth. For the last year, she had indeed supplied him with information on various unfavourable characters that had passed through Dreamstation. Of course she had been very careful as to what she shared and when, protecting herself and Creass at all times. Robiah had been happy with that, but now things had changed with Creass leaving Dreamstation.

"The situation has changed. I do not have as much contact with his 'associates' of which you might be interested."

"I'm interested in very specific areas of his business today," Robiah continued as if he hadn't heard her. "I want to know anything you know about Quantum supply."

And that was enough for her to understand.

She smiled and settled back on the bench a little. "I see," she told him with as sarcastic smile as she could manage under such an itchy wig. "I've heard the Elite have made it a personal vendetta to hunt down all those involved with Quantum."

"No more than usual," Robiah replied, but she had seen the faint annoyance in his expression before he had controlled it.

"That is not what I've heard. I hear there is a cloud of burning rose grain over Litan that can be seen from orbit. I hear the Elite are shutting down all the dealers they can within their borders."

"No," Robiah countered, "It's just one Elite warrior."

Interesting.

"And he's focus is not Quantum itself, it's Creass he's after."

She felt a shadow of cold pass over her. "The Elite have never been interested in Dreamstation, before or since."

"That was before Creass harboured Iketani. The Elite take such matters personally, at least this Elite warrior does. Especially when it had become clear that Iketani had worked through Dreamstation to arrange the assassination on Athos of the Rosenthal High Councillor. Rumour has it that Emmagan herself flew into a rage when her family were nearly murdered along with Garthew."

The cold solidified into Seeal's spine, sliding right up the back of her neck. She felt the desperate urge to run and hide. "Iketani was responsible for that?"

Robiah nodded emphatically, clearly enjoying the moment.

The Elite were after Creass, and even if only one of them was actively pursuing him, Robiah was informing her that Elite Emmagan herself supported the investigation. The Elite did not forget.

Seeal remembered the Elite who had visited Dreamstation chasing Iketani. They had intimidated Creass, despite the show he had put on, but not her. She knew enough about Elite to know that they thought themselves heroes, and heroes didn't kill indiscriminately. Throw themselves stupidly into battle without thinking, yes, but not killing humans without at least a trial first. However, an Elite enraged in vengeance... No one had seen that and survived to tell others about it.

"Can you call them off his back?" She asked, though doubted Robiah had such influence.

"I already have been," he replied, surprising her. "I have stalled and redirected the Elite in question best I can, but there is talk now of a new Quantum, and that has angered the Elite further. He is gradually capturing previous Dreamstation dealers, and sooner or later, one of them is going to know something."

She glanced away, quickly calculating, and simultaneously glancing at the open door behind her right shoulder. She knew Robiah always organised the seating for these meetings so that she sat her with her back to the door to keep her unnerved, and it had never worked before, but the prospect of an Elite now hunting Creass was another story.

She looked back at him. "So if I don't help you, you will turn the Elite on me and Creass."

"I am just informing you of information you may find helpful. That is our agreement isn't it? We exchange information."

"I do not remember you giving me much in the way of information before."

"I disagree," he replied. "After all I've let you know what situation your brother has gotten himself into, kept him out of prison, perhaps worse. We had an agreement over him."

She clenched her jaw again.

Damn her brother.

"I've told you before, Ulfur is his own man, I have nothing to do with him anymore," she tried.

"You say that, but you've protected him before, and I suspect you'll do so again. You known his nature better than me, what do you think will happen to him if he's left to his own devices again?"

She wanted to curse out loud, to pound the tabletop in fury, that yet again Ulfur haunted her life. "And if I walk away now, away from you, our agreement, and Creass?" She asked calmly.

Robiah sat back, appearing nonchalant. She could not entirely tell if it was all an act, her own emotions disturbing her reading of him. Damn Ulfur. Why could he not just have disappeared from her life the way she had told him too? How ironic that her family were a curse upon her.

"I would think you would want to help me," Robiah replied. "That it would be a matter of family honour."

She scoffed at that. "There is no honour in my family."

"But there is in you."

She frowned at him. "This is a dramatic change in tactics, Robiah. To give me information, to then threaten and then try with flattery to finish. I am beginning to think that you are very much in need of my information."

"I am nowhere near finishing," he replied, his expression serious. More so than she had ever seen him. "Despite what you think of me, the Elite, or of your brother, a storm is coming. You know that. It will hit regardless of where you run to, or what I get out of this meeting. You know there is something changing out there, something darker."

She held still.

"With Creass chased into hiding, a void was formed and it has been filled far too quickly and efficiently for my liking."

She watched his expression closely. He was nervous, truly so, though he concealed it behind determination and thin anger.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You believe someone forced Creass out of place to take control."

"Yes."

She pondered the idea. She had seen the powerful factions slowly growing against Creass when he had been based in Dreamstation, but it had been her own action that had actually brought Dreamstation down via the Elite.

"Why your particular interest in Quantum?" She asked.

"I believe it's the basis of some new powerful elements that are filling that criminal void."

"And you want to set the Elite on them," she concluded.

"In doing so, perhaps the Elite will be directed away from Creass and yourself."

"And what of Ulfur?" She hated to ask, but could not help herself asking nonetheless.

"I will keep to our original deal," Robiah replied. "If you help me that is."

She sighed and concluded quickly that she had no choice.

"Creass is currently dealing directly with several suppliers of Quantum," she reported. "Two are older distributors, names you will easily know and are of little interest. The third is new and..." she considered the term to use. She hated dealers and suppliers, hated having to be around them at the best of times, but this new one, he was different. "Concerning."

"How so?"

"There is something wrong about him, I can't describe it better than that," she replied honestly. "He's too controlled."

"Of course you would know nothing of that," Robiah suggested with a mocking tone.

She ignored his comment. "His name is Khor, and he has been responsible for the last two generations of Quantum."

"I've heard plenty of talk about the latest batch."

"Everyone is talking about it, and Creass wants in on it."

"Why would Khor, an up and coming famous supplier, choose to work with Creass?"

"Which is another reason why I am suspicious of him," she confided.

"You think Khor is using him."

"Yes."

"Where can I find Khor?"

"I don't know, but rumours suggest the outer border planets of the Alliance. I've heard several say that he moves his operations outwards with the expanding border."

"How does Creass reach him?"

"_He_ reaches Creass through a third party relay. He was first introduced to Creass through an unusual source, an excommunicated Genii commander named Kolya. He has his fingers in many _darker_ pots," she told him, using his own wording from before.

She knew that Kolya was working his own ways to destabilise his own former home world. It was no secret to those in the tightest circles that Kolya intended to overthrow the Genii ruling body and assert himself as leader. She suspected his involvement in Quantum was a means to create a problem he could cure later when it was useful for him. It would be wise to get Ulfur out of that target group as quickly as possible, and in a way that would allow her not to have to see or speak to her brother, which would be through Robiah.

"Where is Kolya?" Robiah asked.

"That is a question that _many_ would like to know, and no one I know does."

"How does he arrange meetings with Creass?"

"Communication through a third party as well. I can look into the communications histories, see if I can lockdown some clues."

"Good, and anything on this Khor," Robiah replied, his attention already shifting internally as he processed what she had told him. "We'll meet tomorrow again, back here."

"I can't get here that soon," she responded sharply. "I leave again so soon and Creass will grow suspicious."

"When then?"

It was the first time Robiah had put the meeting arrangements in her hands. He was under pressure of some kind. "Three days time, but not here. On Aldine, the old tavern by the docks, in the back corner by the window."

"Agreed. What time?"

"Same time as today," she confirmed as she rose from the bench and reached for her basket. "Same rules as always."

"I _will_ see you there," he stated, the words lingering with a threat as to what he might be capable should she not be there.

Rolling her eyes at his forced theatrics, Seeal turned her back to him and headed back out into the bustling lanes, adjusting her wig somewhat as she slid into the crowd.

She walked on automatic, minding her Balsan appearance and demeanour, but inside her thoughts turned quickly. She had thought things were bad before, but now knew things were far worse. She had suspected Iketani had been up to something that last time she had been on Dreamstation, but arranging to assassinate major Alliance leaders – that was tainting Creass in a whole new way. The Elite would be out for blood, and Robiah was right that it would only be a matter of time before the Elite caught someone who knew where Creass was now based.

She had to get Creass to leave Lalwani, to cut ties for a while, let things cool down. She would go her own way then, distance herself and let Creass look after himself from then onwards.

She would have to move far outside Alliance territory, which was not what she had hoped to do. There were great benefits in being able to slip in and out of Alliance territory as she was doing today on Belsa. The Alliance provided protection from the Wraith, and access to the best technology and healthcare. But, she had to think long term now. She had grown up way outside the touch of the Alliance, so she knew she could survive out there. She surely would survive longer than by staying close to Creass who clearly would be thrown to the Elite by any of his continuing contacts. Kolya had been working with Iketani that last time, so it was possible that Creass was being set up again. Creass would have to stop dealing with Kolya and Khor for sure, and if the Elite got hold of him they would likely string him up by his...

There was a subtle change in the flow of the crowd around her. Focusing her attention on the change, she became aware of some commotion near the Portal to the left. She kept her head down though, progressing forward still, following several other women heading towards the washing warehouses on the far side of the open crowded space in front of the Portal. Once in the first warehouse, she would slip out the back, walk a quick evasive route back to the Portal to ensure Robiah didn't have anyone following her, though he had never done so before, and leave Belsa as quickly as possible.

Only, the commotion was growing louder in the crowd. She heard a raised male Balsan voice and then another, angry, but tinged with fear. Fights were not unusual on such a male driven world as this, but she didn't hear fear very often on Belsa.

As she reached the far side of the crowded space, the dank smell of the washing warehouses mixing with dry dust and the scent of immanent rain, she angled her head to the side in an attempt to catch a glimpse of what was happening.

She saw bustling movement, someone falling aside onto the dust and a shout of protest. Someone was moving through the crowd, pushing their way through and ignoring complaints. Yet, people were moving away from them, very eagerly so.

She stopped and stood fully upright enough to look through a gap between people to see a tall man step out into view.

He was large, dressed in brown and black leather armour, and weaponry surrounded his belt. He stood out literally from the crowd, shockingly different to everything around him. Long thickly roped muscular arms were bare down from the shoulder in the strong Belsan sunlight, and he seemed quite pale to be out in the open on such a hot planet. He turned his head of short brown hair round, scanning the surrounding area as if it was a potential threat, and as he looked round in her vague direction, she suddenly realised what this man was, but also that she had seen him before. He was difficult to forget, for the far side of his face was deeply scarred and decorated with elaborate Wraith tattoos.

He was an Elite.

Shock, disbelief, and something disturbingly close to panic raced up her spine, but that was nothing compared to the sudden moment when his eyes latched onto her.

She knew instantly that he recognised her, despite her disguise.

Mother of all Wraith shit!

She dropped the washing basket and ran.

People scattered around her, but she had gotten into the crowd quickly enough. She heard a roar of furious Elite lungs, but she darted around two women and into the closest washing warehouse.

Damp, wretched smells assaulted her nose as she raced along the inside of the packed warehouse's front wall, keeping in the shadows, but already she could hear people shouting behind her.

She slammed her way through a door, which took her into the drying room. Massively long lines of cord were strung across the large room, from which thousands of items of wet clothing and sheets hung. She dashed a haphazard route around the hangings.

If she could get enough space between her and the Elite she was almost certain she could lose him, for surely he would be slower on foot than her. Another roar of anger behind her told her that he was in the drying room now, but the noise was helpful for it allowed her to keep track of where he was. From the shouts and screams, he was being less tactful about how he got through the room, likely shoving fabric and people aside.

A blast of light lit up the warehourse and a burst of stunning fire impacted a wooden barrel just ahead to her left, sending water flying up over her and those running in all directions ahead of her.

Dropped wet clothing littered the floor now and she almost slipped and fell, but she righted herself quickly, jumping and rolling over the litter, to rise and dart to the right, behind more drying sheets.

Another blast set fire to the sheets a split second after she passed them.

The back door was ahead of her though, her original point of exit she had planned to leave by. And consequently there was a bag hidden in a broken bucket up on a shelf by the exit. She reached up and tore the bucket down with her, pulling out the bag and looping it around her arm as she shoulder-barged her way out through the back door. As she did so, she looked back over her shoulder to see sheets and clothing flying, but he had lost his direct line of sight of her. Until the warehouse back door slammed shut behind her. It would communicate her exit point instantly, but she had no time to be so careful as she immediately turned a sharp left. Hopefully she knew the terrain of tight twisting lanes around the closely set buildings far better than him.

Her Balsa skirt was wet now and adding extra weight to her exit, but she had come prepared. She turned a sharp right, into the tight lanes of this district, and reached down to the right side of the skirt. It had a weakened seam, which she tore apart, revealing her more usual dark trousers beneath. She dumped the torn fabric in a passing feed bowl, and turned another right, then left. As she did, she pulled her wig and scarf off her head, tearing out some of her hair along with the pins. She added the wig to another passing animal feed bin, but retained the red scarf, turning it inside out to reveal its blue lining. She wrapped it up around her dark pulled back hair.

He would be instinctively looking for her to be in her red scarf and blond wig, and changing those details would give her a little time.

Another turn and she slammed her back against a dry, broken wall and held still. This district was quieter, being only residential buildings, but that could work against her too.

Gasping in air, she listened intently. She heard someone scream in shock not too far away, which was followed by the clutter of wooden things falling and then the startled cry of poultry. Then silence.

She held absolutely still.

He would wait for her to move, wherever he was.

By feel alone, she pulled her bag open and pulled out her spare black shirt. Moving swiftly, she tugged off her three layered colourful Balsan top. It was an instant relief to be free of the hot layers, and she paused a moment, her arms and shoulders bare in the small tight top she had been wearing under the layers.

There was a creak of wood under pressure in the distance.

She glanced upwards.

He was on the roofs - that could be the only explanation as to why she couldn't hear any signs of pursuit. From up there he could observe far further than on ground level, and people wouldn't notice him so readily, and he was very noticeable. From up there, he would wait for her to move and reveal her location.

She would have to stay close to the buildings' walls.

Wrapping her black shirt around her, securing its ties around her middle, she tossed the bag with its Balsan clothing aside.

Why had she not brought a weapon? Her fear of being caught by Balsans had blinded her to the possibility of an Elite hunting her.

Truth was she had not even thought to plan for that eventuality.

Another creak of wood and a cry of alarm from the distant right drew her attention.

She could not stay here. If she could get out of this district, then she could lie low, but not here. He would storm through every house to find her.

She moved smoothly and carefully along the wall, keeping in its shadow and making sure not to cast one of her own.

A rumble overhead made her pause, but it was only the clouds, almost to the point of rain. She looked up at the slice of sky she could see above the narrow lane. There was no sign of the Elite, but the sky was dark and heavy.

A droplet of water landed on her right cheek.

The rain would help her, the sound help conceal her escape.

She continued along the wall until she reached its end and peered very carefully out into the larger road beyond. There was no one in it.

Wraith shit.

She pressed her back against the wall again and slid back along it, back to where she had entered the lane. There was an open doorway in the opposite wall, from which she could smell food cooking. She moved towards it carefully, her eyes and ears focused upwards.

Rain began to softly patter down as she entered the kitchen, glancing around for the cook, but there was no one in sight. A pot of stew was simmering happily away as she slipped through the kitchen and into the room beyond. A small boy looked up at her with little surprise. She smiled at him as she raced past towards the far open window, jumped through it and landed in another small alleyway.

Rain was pattering faster now, but still not yet the full on storm she suspected would soon follow.

She moved swiftly across the alleyway and round the far corner. Two hog beasts looked up at her from their feed bowl, but immediately returned to it as she ran quietly past them to the porch of the next building.

The rain might help her move unheard, but it meant that she had no idea as to where the Elite may be either. She considered finding a place to look up at the rooftops, but decided instantly against it. That would be what he would wait for. Prey always made the mistake of looking back to see where the predator was rather than actually just continuing to run away.

She slipped through a grain storage room, through another kitchen and out into another alleyway. However, this homeowner was there, shaking out sheets. The old woman looked round in alarm.

"Good day," Seeal said politely and quietly as she dashed by.

There was no cry of alarm behind her as she darted around the next building and, rain beginning to soak into the scarf around her head, she found herself with a wider road to cross to reach the next buildings along.

She would be exposed if she ran across it.

"Hello there, pretty," a slithery voice announced from her left. She looked up sharply to find a man leaning out of an open window, a look of Belsan male enjoyment plain.

She glared at him and moved away, assessing the road ahead. There were a few carts moving along it that could provide some cover.

"Hey, pretty," the man called louder from his window.

She moved quickly, using the carts as hiding points across the road until she could dash into the first lane she came to. Moving around two complaining men stood over a split bucket, she continued swiftly down the lane at a quick walk. Someone running always caught the eye, but a hurried walk was a normal sight in any town.

A turning into the first available opening brought her into a small garden. Someone had used the flat dry triangular space between two buildings to arrange long pots of plants. Beans grew up the wall to her right, denying her a hiding place against that building, and leaving the only way to proceed as either across the open garden space or back into the lane.

Voices talking too low to be normal in the lane behind her pushed her to go for her first option.

She moved past the first line of pots.

"There she is," a familiarly nasty voice slithered out from behind and she looked back to see that her former window watching admirer had followed her. And he had brought two other men.

"She is pretty," one said. "All alone too, out in the rain." He was moving to the right, working to cut off her escape at the far side of the small dry garden.

The third, grinning yellow teeth, stopped in front of the wall of beans and pulled out a handle, which was attached to a shiny knife.

Seeal sighed.

"I do not have time for this," she told them.

"Well we do, don't we boys?" Yellow Teeth teased.

The last man had reached the far corner of the triangular garden and had pulled out his own knife, smaller and duller.

The first man, out of his window, stood with a far more intelligent glint in his eye.

"Go home," she told them, "this is your warning."

"Warning?" Yellow Teeth asked over the rising sound of the falling rain. "I think you've got it backward, female."

Seeal sighed again as she shifted her stance, her arms by her sides. To them she looked defenceless, easy prey.

"You have no idea what kind of female I am," she told them, lifting her voice against the rainfall. "I have more than enough training and life experience to gut all three of you with your own blades. So, just count your loses, turn away and go _away_."

They laughed.

"This is your one and only warning. Anything that happens from here onwards is your own fault. Try and remember that later," she told them with a smile.

For his credit, the first man paused and frowned.

Yellow Teeth, with his back to the beans, was not so wise. He rushed at her, knife first.

She waited and then stepped aside and forward at the last moment, striking a blow on his arm whilst simultaneously kicking out one heel down at his closest knee. His knee crunched a little under her foot, the added weight in the heel adding a little surprise for his kneecap, whilst she snapped her left elbow round into the side of his jaw. She shoved him the rest of the way down to his knees, for the second idiot with a knife was rushing towards her. He was slightly more cautious though.

She darted one way, making out that she was going to run around Yellow Teeth, who was clutching his knee on the ground, and Idiot Number Two adjusted to his right slightly. Just as she wanted.

Quickly, she set her right hand on top of Yellow Teeth's head and used him as support and pivot as she threw herself up and around, kicking Idiot Number Two in the face.

He fell onto the wet ground clutching his nose and cursing. As soon as her feet were on the ground though, she kneed him hard in his closest cheek, and he fell to the ground unconscious, the rain chasing the blood down his face.

Turning swiftly round, she saw that Window Man had been far wiser than his friends and had disappeared, finally heeding her initial warning.

But she was not alone.

A new movement drew her attention abruptly and she looked up towards the top of the building overlooking the garden to see the Elite warrior rising up from a crouch, apparently having been watching the short fight.

She shifted back slightly, away from the two fallen men. She only had two options now for escape: the exit she had arrived through to the right or through the back of the garden behind her. Either way, the Elite was going to know which one she chose.

"You want my one and only warning?" The Elite called down to her, the menace expected, but not the amusement. He was enjoying his moment.

"I told them to walk away," she called up to him. "Are you giving me the same chance?"

"Never," he declared, the amusement long gone. The rain was falling heavily now, bouncing droplets across his armoured shoulders. The black ink of his Wraith tattoos stood out starkly against his pale skin, all with the dramatic backdrop of the dark hanging storm clouds behind him.

She took in the relaxed stance, his arms roped with experienced muscle.

He killed Wraith Queens for a living.

She began moving, knowing she could not cross the garden in time, but tried anyway. She heard his boots hit the wet ground behind her. Her only grace was that with so much rain falling, he could not use his stunner effectively, but then the alternative was hand-to-hand combat with an Elite.

She was a good fighter, but she had never matched herself against an Elite before.

She felt him near her rather than seeing or hearing anything. Instinct born of too many years of fighting for her life had her turning abruptly back towards him, Yellow Teeth's knife sliding out from her sleeve where she had hidden it during her first fight.

She struck it up and round, aiming for the arm she sensed reaching for her.

He had somehow anticipated the move though, perhaps had seen her slip the weapon away earlier, and her arm was struck with a force that penetrated deeply into the bone, shocking the knife out of her grip, but she moved with the impact, turning as if to fall down, weak and hurt. Only she kicked out with her left foot, aiming for his groin.

He pulled his body back a fraction to protect himself, but his elbow still made heavy impact with her shoulder, dropping her to the ground properly this time.

As the hard wet ground tried to shove itself up into the side of her ribcage, she scissored her legs up around his arm that was reaching down to her. He grunted as her ankles caught around his shoulder and she completed a lock on his wrist, threatening to pull his whole arm out of joint. He began to pull back, bringing his free hand round to pull her free. She punched up hard and fast into the unscarred side of his face. Men never expected women to punch them so directly.

Hard angled cheekbone met her fist though and she felt one knuckle pop loudly, but she couldn't worry about that now. Her legs still tangled up around his arm, she thrust one heel up, hitting the other side of his jaw with her overly weighted shoe heel.

His neck smacked round, more from surprise than pain she suspected, but she used the moment to untangle herself and kick backwards away from him. She turned onto her belly, kicking backwards at him again as she reached out to one of the long pots that held tall green flowering plants. The pot was too heavy for her to use as a weapon.

She instead scooped up a handful of the dirt inside and as his hands grabbed her, she spun round and shoved the dirt up right into his eyes. He cursed and pulled his head back, the wet damp dirt blinding him momentarily.

She took the moment and kicked at his groin, hard.

He dropped to one knee, but he didn't let go of her.

She struggled in his grasp and ratcheted her head forward, trying to head butt his nose, but he had somehow again anticipated that move and turned his thick forehead down and she all but knocked herself out against his primitive skull.

Seeing lights dancing through her vision, she struggled against him, but his grip remained strong as he turned his head upwards, the rain washing down over his dirt filled eyes.

She struggled harder, kicking at his legs and middle. She landed a few, but his weight was coming down over her, one shoulder bearing her to the hard ground again.

Her vision, blurry lights gone, was sent swimming once more as his weight impacted her hard into the ground.

"Stay down!" He ordered her over the pelting rain, but she could hear the discomfort in his voice. His vision was likely still compromised and he couldn't risk letting go of her to wipe at his eyes. She hoped his balls still hurt too.

"Never," she shouted loudly into his closest ear and set her teeth around it.

He reacted by leaning more of his weight down on her, crushing the air out of her, but she kept her teeth on his ear, hurting him enough, but not biting through, as she got her hands up between their bodies, pulling at the weapons strapped to his belt.

Understanding her plan, he jerked his head down at her, pulling his ear free from her as she instinctively pulled her head aside to prevent another head injury.

And then he was standing up, pulling her up with him.

His strength was immense, for he was using his legs only to lift his weight and hers.

She looked up to see his eyes open, clogged somewhat with dirt, but working again.

She reached up and tried to bury her thumbs in them.

He roared like a beast as he shook his head, dislodging her hands enough to save his eyes. His grip on her had loosened slightly though, so that he was only gripping fistfuls of her shirt.

She dropped her hands to the ties at her middle and in one swift move she pulled them open and slipped down out of the top. He tried to grab her as she fell away from him, but his vision was still limited and she had taken him completely by surprise.

She rolled away and kicked out at his right knee as she did.

He grunted, but that was all she noted because she scrabbled up to her feet and ran for the exit from the garden.

She ran for her life, rain running down her face and her bare arms. She slid around corner after corner, not looking back once, not listening, just running.

Above her, the clouds rumbled and then shook violently. Torrential rain poured down then, plastering her hair to her scalp and shoulders, her scarf lost somewhere back in the fight.

After two more turns, she found a main road and raced down it back in the direction of the Portal, ignoring any attention she might cause. There were still carts and people moving down the road, but she ignored them all as potential cover for she just kept running.

She had one chance to escape now and that was it.

Her lungs burned, her breathing laboured with exhaustion and an emotion she had not felt in a very long time – fear.

The open space in front of the Portal held the busiest cart traffic and the busy crowd of before had been thinned right out by the rainstorm. She danced around the carts, ignoring anyone's shouts, and ahead of her, she saw that fate was on her side in this moment. The Portal was open.

She did not care where it was open too, only that it was open now and the back end of a cart was disappearing through it. The Portal would close immediately after it went through, and if with it, she could dial up a new address on the new world's Portal. He would not be able to trace her quickly enough. She just had to get through with the cart.

She raced for the Portal, reaching up to grasp the back bar of the cart and the sweet sensation of the wormhole washed over her.

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TBC


	3. Foreplay

**Note:** I know it's not a subtle chapter title ;)

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**Chapter 3 - Foreplay**

"I had nothing to do with this betrayal," Narro declared for the fourth time from where he stood outside the cell that held his former slave who had tried to kill John last night.

The brig around the cell was packed with the Alliance delegates, who had been briefed on the situation earlier, but only now, at the end of the day's negotiations, had been granted their request to see the prisoner. John didn't have any problems with that, since he had a full team in here with him and two Elite watching over the proceedings.

"And yet he is your slave," Axhar pointed out calmly.

John glanced at the purple-skinned man with interest. He had had quite a bit of contact with Axhar lately, since he had helped get these negotiations with the Alliance up and running. Though he was only half-Pelydrian, his mother being the Athosian Representative to Pelydr, Axhar had kept the full purple colour to his skin. He was more Athosian in his manner though, a characteristic which John realised he was getting good a spotting. But, then he knew some Athosians pretty well now.

He looked back to the sullen restrained man sat in the centre of the Ancient cell. The glow of the force fields between the cell's strange metal bars cast John's would-be assassin in an even more pitiful hue. Not that John felt in anyway sorry for the guy.

"He says that he was born Genii and was sold into Vancet service," John reminded the Alliance ambassadors. They had filed in here all of five minutes ago and the blame-game had started almost immediately.

He was only grateful that Sumner wasn't here because the Colonel would only have added more paranoid kindling to the mix. As it was, Sumner was busy dealing with the overcrowded and anxious refugees filling up the east pier. With so many people here from the Alliance, some of the displaced people who were staying in Atlantis had been getting a little angsty.

"Genii?" One Alliance woman asked, her head turning to the Genii ambassador stood to the far left. Hulte was dressed in the ever-present Genii military uniform which every Genii wore, and John suspected they probably all slept in it too. The guy stood straight and tall, and he could have been Sumner's brother. He looked like he had been forged in battle under a hot sun, with deep creases and a scattering of small scars cutting into his aging cheeks. His attitude was just as stonily carved.

"I have already discussed this issue with those from Atlantis and the Elite," Hulte replied.

"And now you will discuss it with us," another stated. "If one of our own people had infiltrated Narro's delegation and attempted to assassinate a high ranking member of Atlantis, and Representative to Athos, then I am sure you would have something to say about it..."

"He is _not_ one of my people," Hulte replied sharply with the same tone teachers had used against John when he had argued a maths answer in class.

"He says he was born on the Genii homeworld," Halling put in from where he stood in the shadows of the brig, Teyla beside him.

"We will have to take a blood sample back to our scientists to test that claim," Hulte stated simply.

"And if he is confirmed to be Genii?" Another Alliance face asked. John was starting to forget the names and origins of so many new Alliance faces over the last couple of days.

"Even if he is, that does not implicate the Genii," Hulte argued. He appeared as stoic as ever, but John thought he saw a tiny bit of concern in the guy's grey eyes. "What he has confessed is that he has lived his entire adult life with the Vancet."

Narro, the Vancet ambassador, turned towards Hulte, his shoulders rising. "He is _not _under my orders. He is more likely to be a Genii spy."

The atmosphere of the room shifted, the many Alliance eyes all shifting with suspicion and/or concern between the two men.

"The Vancet have nothing of value for us to waste such time planting a spy," Hulte replied.

This was going well.

Narro shifted his stance to face Hulte more directly, more confrontationally. "Your people were interested enough in our latest scanning technology."

"All accusations on that matter were unfounded," Hulte replied.

"One of the three accused was Genii, from what I remember of the report of the theft from the Vancet developmental facility," another voice put in.

Hulte glanced towards the new voice and frowned. "Keep your opinions to those of growing grasses and seeds, Valavero."

"Your words imply once again that the Genii do not respect anyone who does not wear a uniform or works in radiation suits," an aged woman stated, her tone grave. "What do you feed your growing populations on while you continue to pollute your own world's soil? Your many workers' bellies are kept full by food grown on other worlds, Hulte."

Hulte let out a heavy sigh. "The facts in this situation are that this assassin arrived in Atlantis under the title and protection of the Vancet."

"He did not act under my orders," Narro argued again.

"He was under your orders until the moment he pointed a weapon at Major Sheppard," someone unhelpfully pointed out. "Even if you did not know of his intentions, with what type of men do you surround yourself? Or are you in fact ignorant or weak and others are controlling those around you?"

Narro turned to loudly protest against that provocation.

John decided it was time someone stepped in, and as he was the most senior from Atlantis in the room, he was the only choice. So he literally stepped in, moving between Narro and the other man, hands out, hopefully in a soothing and non-threatening way. "Let's all just calm down, take a breath."

"It seems your quarry has become your protector, Narro," Edyis, the High Council's negotiator, said sarcastically and several others around him smiled and sniggered.

Axhar moved forward in John's peripheral vision. "The captured criminal," he began in a voice not all that loud but pitched at just the right tone to carry over the sniggering and muttering in the unruly Alliance group, "has already confessed that he was secretly working for a third party. An excommunicated Genii commander named Kolya."

All eyes slid back to Hulte.

"We were told Kolya died of battle injuries two years ago," Narro said with enough accusation to float Atlantis, his eyes burrowing into Hulte.

"As far as I was aware he did," Hulte replied. "It seems that he may have been able to trick the examiners in the hospital."

"He appears to be far more able than that," another said. "Many heard of the Genii invasion of Atlantis-"

"That was an unsanctioned attack," Hulte interrupted, "he had already been disowned from the military force, and we were under the belief that he had succumbed to his injuries on his return from Atlantis."

"There appears to be much that your people are unaware," Narro muttered.

"This from someone who's personal slave just tried to kill an important figure at a peace treaty," Hulte argued back, aggression starting to show on his face.

Teyla's information from last night played through John's thoughts. She had said that the Genii ruling body was in trouble. Though Kolya hadn't been successful last night, he might still cause considerable trouble for the Genii and their supreme leader, Cowen. The question was whether Hulte was secretly actually working for Kolya as well.

"Please, please," Axhar called for calm over the rising Alliance voices. "One at a time. Atlantis has in no way accused either the Genii or the Vancet of this act. They believe this Kolya to be the sole source."

"This is if we believe this report of an apparent 'assassination attempt' is true," Edyis put in.

John glared round at the man. "Are you saying we made up what happened last night?" He asked incredulously as he indicated the prisoner in the cell.

"It would be in your advantage to embarrass and distract my fellow ambassadors by suggesting that one of our people tried to kill you."

John narrowed his eyes at the man. He was real trouble this guy, but not in the thick-headed idiot way, he was far worse. He was like Kolya – very smart and really good at working anything to his advantage. Maybe _he_ was working with Kolya – he certainly wasn't in favour of the non-aggression treaty. John opened his mouth to say what he really thought about Edyis' suggestion.

"The Elite have no doubt about what happened last night," Halling put in before John could get in his glib reply though.

All eyes turned to Halling and Teyla, stood tall and proud in the half shadows. Dressed in their fighting gear in dark browns and blacks, their Wraith tattoos dark against their skin, and wearing the only bladed weapons allowed into the city. It had taken a lot of arguing to get Sumner to agree to that, but no one got an Elite to surrender all their weapons. That the Elite had agreed to only bring bladed weapons and no guns, stunners, or explosives, was a massive sign of respect and hopefully Sumner got that. It had also been a big sign to the Alliance delegation that there was a respectful understanding between Atlantis and the Elite. And right now, the two Elite warriors looked mighty serious, dangerous, and very cool.

If Edyis continued his suggestion now, it would be against the Elite themselves.

All eyes subtly shifted back to Edyis.

"Then my suggestion is mute," Edyis replied after a beat, conceding, but John could tell he hadn't really wanted to. He was one to watch for sure. "However, it appears that if this excommunicated Kolya has a vendetta against you, Major Sheppard, following his unsanctioned attack on you two years previously, then that is a matter between you both and does not concern the Alliance."

That threw John for a second.

"It _is_ a matter for our consideration," Axhar disagreed in a soft strong voice, "for this assassin came in under our protection and our promise of non-aggression during these negotiations. It would be Atlantis' right to request us all to leave following this incident."

Edyis looked at John and then back to Axhar. "Atlantis would not do that. They are grovelling at our feet for this treaty, they will not ask us to leave." Edyis looked back at John and he met his disturbingly amused looking gaze. "Or do you wish to turn us out on our heels, Major Sheppard?"

John felt all the Alliance eyes now focused solely on him, and a moment of tense silence held as everyone waited to see how he would react.

He had to be political.

The guy could do with being punched in the face though.

Deciding to go with the political angle, because Woolsey and Faxon would kill him otherwise, he pulled a small smile as he looked Edyis right in the eyes. "That's not my call."

The tension in the room seemed to ease, but John held Edyis' gaze and the other man smiled back, having understood the subtext of John's answer.

"Fortunately," Axhar continued, "Atlantis accepts that this criminal entered into the city under all our noses and his actions do not reflect upon the Alliance." Which was only partly true, because Sumner had his own paranoid theories.

"Will the criminal remain a prisoner in Atlantis?" The older female ambassador asked.

"The assault was inflicted upon them," Axhar replied instantly, "and therefore they have right to hold those responsible."

"He is Alliance," someone else objected.

"And if a member of Atlantis was arrested in our territory, would we not expect to hold them for our own justice?" Axhar asked logically. John wasn't sure logic would work with this bunch. In just this small group, representing the Alliance as a whole, it was clear that there were definite factions, and John wondered if that extended back out into the Alliance.

"Atlantis criminals _were_ in our territory," a man stood beside Edyis stated, "when Garthew was assassinated, but they flew away unhindered."

"Atlantis was cleared of any involvement in that assassination and the attempted assassination of my family on Athos," Teyla's voice drifted into the mix from the far left, and all faces turned in her direction. As far as John was aware, those had been her first words she had spoken to the ambassadors since the negotiations had started.

"The Elite will continue to question the criminal on behalf of the Alliance," Halling put in before anyone could say anything else, but already it was clear that the tension in the room had been deflated considerably by the Elite's involvement. "We will discover all he has to tell."

"And we trust that you will share all that you learn with us, Honoured Elite," Edyis asked, which raised some eyebrows, and several people who had been standing close to Edyis, now leaned away a fraction. Despite the bickering among the delegation, their respect for the Elite still held strong from what John had witnessed. Except it seemed Edyis was not above trying to order around the Elite. John had a mental image of how Edyis' comment might have been responded to by Oneakka if he had been here and not Halling and Teyla.

However, unlike the other overtly intimidating Elite warrior, Halling simply looked directly at Edyis and said nothing.

"We trust that the Genii will accurately report the results of the criminal's genetic tests?" The older woman asked Hulte, and everyone turned to him again, appearing relieved for the distraction.

"The results should be available tomorrow," Hulte replied, his tone implying he was insulted by the woman's doubt, but John noted that he hadn't actually answered her question.

"Then I suggest we all retire for the night," Axhar said to everyone with the tone of a tour coach.

Everyone seemed keen on that plan, perhaps because of the growing tension and Edyis' stupid comments to the Elite, so they all filed out of the brig in a mostly orderly fashion. Except for Edyis who held back as the last to leave. John met the man's gaze again. There wasn't any obvious threat, suspicion, or anger in Edyis' expression, but John got all three from him somehow before the guy turned and followed the others out of the room.

As soon as he was gone, John let out a breath. It would have been so much easier if Colonel Carter could have led this question and answer session. She was busy with her regular evening meetings with Woolsey and Faxon though, and had assigned John the task of explaining all the details from last night's attack to the Alliance feudal lords. Excluding the major role Teyla had played in the event of course, which no one knew about.

One of the downsides of leading his own team now was that John got assigned to things that before he had just stood listening to, grateful he hadn't had to deal with himself. Some days he was almost convinced that was the real reason why Sumner had agreed to him having his own team – so the Colonel could delegate the worst jobs to him.

"Edyis is one to watch," Halling's voice said softly from John's left and he turned to see the tall Elite and Teyla moving past him towards the brig's exit as well. Behind them, John saw that Narro had also held back and was stood talking quietly with Axhar in the far corner of the room.

"Some days it seems like everyone's got to be watched," John muttered pessimistically.

Halling let out an amused breath as he moved away. "Welcome to our world."

John managed to smile up at the Elite, grateful for Halling's input in the meeting, before his gaze slid to Teyla. She was leaving with Halling, but she held John's gaze for longer than normal in public. He wanted to ask her what her plans were tonight, whether she wanted to go for another walk around the towers, and whether it would be his place or hers tonight.

He couldn't ask any of that though, but maybe something of those questions showed in his expression, because she smiled at him before she looked away and followed Halling out of the brig.

Mmm, she might be able to read his expressions very accurately, but he wasn't sure he had understood what that smile had meant.

"Major Sheppard," Axhar called from across the room. Reluctantly John looked away from Teyla's departure and moved to join Axhar and Narro. Another man, a servant perhaps, stood a foot behind Narro, his hands open and crossed at the wrists in front of him, as if to make it very clear that his hands were empty. After last night, the Vancet delegation were very angsty. Across the brig, Lorne and Ford stood in silent watch, and John would bet a week's pay that they had their sights fixed on the servant.

"I wish to reinforce my people's place in this matter," Narro said insistently even before John had reached them.

"We understand your point," John replied carefully as he took up the empty space in the small circle.

Narro glanced over his shoulder, apparently having seen John's attention on his servant. "Have no concerns, he is my cousin and I trust him implicitly."

John nodded, but didn't say anything more. Up until last night, Narro had probably trusted the man sitting silently in the cell as well.

"What I am concerned about," Narro continued, "is Kolya. I had dealings with him back when he was a commander in good standing in the Genii Confederation." John focused more closely at that. "He was a dangerous man."

John nodded. "He still is."

"And if he has infiltrated my closest circle, then he could have done so in many others."

"It is a concern," Axhar agreed.

"It seems that you and I both share as focus of Kolya's vengeance, for I believe he selected me to take the blame for your near assassination for a specific reason," Narro confided in a very quiet voice. John leant a fraction closer. "He and my sister..." Narro didn't need to say any more.

"Ah," John summarised.

"I saw what kind of man he was, and I...made sure she would not see him anymore. She apparently accepted my judgement, but I always suspected that she had continued to meet with him in secret after that time."

"Do you think she still is?" John asked carefully, but Axhar's warning look was too late.

"She unfortunately succumbed to an infection many years ago," Narro replied in a far too painfully even tone, and then paused. "After childbirth."

John exchanged a look with Axhar.

"She was married, even before her occasional liaisons with Kolya, but after the birth, I went so far as to have my beloved niece's blood tested in secret. She carries many markers common to the Genii."

John lifted his eyebrows. "How old is she?"

"Only seven yearly cycles, and she lives in a small community that cares for her closely, but I am concerned now that perhaps..."

"That Kolya knows," John concluded softly.

"If he knows of her existence, then I suspect that there are those close to my family that have been in contact with him."

"You need to move her somewhere new, somewhere safe," John told him.

"That has already been arranged early this morning," Narro replied.

"Do you have any ideas as to who may be, or has been, in contact with Kolya?" Axhar asked.

"No, but there were unfortunately many in my sister's and my close circle back then who had known about her liaisons with Kolya. I have asked the Elite to look into this matter for me, and I will willingly share any information we discover with Atlantis, in payment for bringing this upon you."

A little surprised, John nodded. "And we'll do the same," he promised, not that they had knew anything new about Kolya up until last night, but Woolsey and Torren had both taught him that favours worked both ways in politics.

"That is good of you," Narro replied with a small tight smile. "I would hope as well that all I have shared does not extend far."

"This information will be kept need-to-know, you have my word," John promised.

Narro glanced at Axhar, who nodded and only then did Narro nod.

"I will put in an official request to take custody of this...man, as is expected of me, once I return to my people. I advise that it might be in your best interests not to hold one of the Alliance in your cell for long."

John nodded at Narro's warning. "Understood."

"I will take my leave and see you both in the morrow."

Narro left, his cousin in tow, who John still decided to keep on his watch list. The list was starting to get very crowded though.

He turned Axhar and let out a sigh. "That went well."

Axhar smiled at him, his dark purple skin forming shadows around his intelligent eyes. "You handled it very well, Major."

"I just pointed to the evidence, not much else to do," he replied, pointing across the room to where his near assassin appeared to have slumped into depression.

"Still, well pointed," Axhar replied and turned. "I need my rest if we are to close this treaty tomorrow."

John watched him leave. "You think we'll get it signed?"

Axhar turned back and grinned again. "After today, the displaced people's plea and the news of Kolya, it will be in the Alliance's best interests to not have to worry about you."

"Alliance got enough to worry about internally?" John asked.

Axhar sighed and angled his head, not confirming or denying John's question, "There are always things to worry about, Major, everywhere."

"Welcome to my world," John muttered as he watched Axhar leave.

0000

Things had continued to feel somewhat strained between her and Halling this afternoon, and despite sharing a meal in the Atlantis' Mess Hall with him and Kari, Teyla still felt less than comfortable with her friend.

She knew his words had been intended as concerns only from a friend, but despite herself, she had found herself somewhat unwilling to talk with him much this evening. Despite understanding his point and making her own points in return, she still felt defensive.

As part of that defensiveness perhaps, she had made sure to walk with him and Kari back to their assigned guest quarters, talking only of the negotiation issues and nothing else. Kari was almost at her limit of patience in dealing with politicians and the boredom of standing for so many hours listening to them argue. She had pointed out on their way to their quarters that the only excitement had been Major Sheppard's near assassination, and that she had missed out on being there.

Teyla had felt her shoulders tense, aware of what Halling might say about that, but he said nothing, only noting that the event might swing in all their favours now in pushing the delegation to sign the treaty. Kari, still unconvinced, had turned away to approach one of the Atlantis security stationed at the major junctions of the pier's corridors, to ask if any of their Marines would care for some sparring, as Halling had enjoyed yesterday evening.

Teyla had walked on in silence with Halling.

He had made a comment about being bored himself and considering whether chasing rose grain with Oneakka might be preferable. The joke landed somewhat flat, but she made herself smile up at him with agreement.

He was her friend and that was important to her, but that he clearly disapproved of her affair with John bothered her still. He was her oldest friend and as such knew her better than most, so why would he think so little of her to believe that she might be influenced by sex and laughter? She was entitled to enjoy some of both her life.

It was possible, as she had suspected a few times in the past, that the large male Elite warriors that were her closest of friends, had taken it upon themselves to be protective of her at times. She did not need or require such protectiveness. They should value her ability to make choices, as she did of them.

She had not thought Halling would have thought so little of her.

They had reached the doors to her quarters first, and he had wished her good dreams in as normal a tone as ever, but the tension had remained clear between them.

And now she stood here, in her Atlantis guest quarters, thoughtfully looking out of an ancient window at the Ancestral City in the darkness. Lights were bright pinpoints across it all, like fireflies hovering, ready to rush out over the dark water beyond. It truly was a beautiful city.

She imagined that everyone who visited its towers was equally enamoured with it, but standing here, looking out at the city's reach, she felt oddly at home here.

Perhaps it was that she had spent so many of her younger years in Tjaru with the towering Ancestor Gateway as her playground and the ancient tunnels beneath. Despite her ambivalence with her people's love of the Ancestors, she had still grown up under their influence, and being here felt somewhat like a dream realised.

It certainly would be for Father.

He could barely wait until he could visit the city. The only fact that had kept him back was that he felt he should not visit until the non-aggression treaty was signed. Though the forerunner and very public supporter of peace and trade with Atlantis, he was still a system leader and had to walk carefully. Only once the treaty was signed, assuming that it would be, would he allow himself to officially visit.

He would love it here.

She hoped she would be free to accompany him when the day came for his visit; she looked forward to seeing his reaction.

A soft bright sound rang out through the room – the bell for the door. Someone was requesting entrance.

She suspected who it might be.

Checking her timekeeping device, she saw that it was far later than she had realised. She had stood by the window in deep thought far longer than planned.

She reached the door and waved her hand over the thin housing of crystals and the doors obediently slid open.

And John was stood on the opposite side.

She smiled at him as she stepped aside to allow him in. "Greetings, Major Sheppard," she said for anyone overhearing them outside in the corridor.

"Hey," he replied as he moved inside, his hands in his pockets and his eyes locked on her. There was a strong focus in his gaze, with a faint frown he was trying to control. He was concerned about something.

The doors slid shut behind him.

"I wasn't sure if you'd be asleep," he said as he stopped just inside her temporary quarters.

"No, truthfully I lost awareness of time passing," she admitted to him, feeling relaxed and pleased to see him. Her former niggling concerns that Halling had raised, all died down in John's presence. She felt so accepted and at ease with him. There were no pressures of station or title. He saw her as the woman she was, and celebrated in that with her.

"You did?" He asked as if relieved, and she suspected his frown might have been because she had not visited him in his quarters as she had done last night.

She smiled at him as she moved away back towards the window. "I was enjoying the view of the city," she told him as she returned to her former position at the window and looked back out to the tiny lights across the towers and the one pier that was in sight.

John, having followed her, reached her side and rested his hands on the narrow windowsill and looked out with her. "You've got a good view from here."

"You told me before that you enjoy your daily run sometimes out along the pier," she asked him, "is that the pier you choose?"

"I tend to vary which one, keep things interesting," he replied, his usual cheeky casualness returned.

She nodded with understanding.

"Things certainly were interesting today," he remarked with emphasis.

She adjusted her gaze to focus not on the city outside, but on his reflection cast against the glass. "Narro spoke to you?" She asked carefully.

"About his niece? Yeah," he confirmed and she watched his reflection turn into his profile as he looked at her beside him. "If she really is Kolya's kid, and he knows about her..."

"It is possible that she is not his daughter," she replied carefully, watching his profile, seeing his eyes moving as he watched her in turn.

It was difficult to judge the line between them sometimes when alone with him. It was simple that certain political and military matters should not be shared, but sometimes the line blurred with him. Things she thought he _should _know for his own survival sometimes clashed with the line she could not cross. If the treaty was signed, then perhaps some lines might be moved, but for now, she had to use her own judgement, and John's judgement too, on how they unofficially shared information between them. The Elite and his people had both benefitted from such sharing of information so far.

On the matter of Kolya, he clearly was in danger, and Narro had already shared his own secret with John, so on that subject she felt safe enough to continue to share on this matter with John.

"His sister had been greatly involved with Vancet trade with the Genii, and as such she had had a lot of contact with many Genii males over the years."

"You think she was seeing more guys?"

"It is possible."

John angled his head and she smiled at the reflected expression, and finally looked round at him properly.

She smiled at his pointed look. "And likely," she confirmed. "But, even if that is so, then Kolya himself may not be sure if the child is his."

John watched her closely and his eyes narrowed and he lifted his chin. "You already know she's not, don't you," he guessed.

"Why do you say that?" She asked, smiling brightly to hide any other expression. His pupils dilated a little further at her smile, as they always did.

"My guess is Narro told you about his niece early this morning, which means the Elite have had almost a whole day to do their research," he replied.

"And you believe we would have access to such information so quickly?" She asked him, pleased at the respect and faith he had in the Elite.

"Sure," he replied with a grin, working some flattery into the smile.

She glanced away to the view outside again. "If we did have such information, why do you believe she is not Kolya's?" She asked him, looking back into his eyes curiously.

"Why would have you mentioned his sister's other Genii guys if they weren't important?" He argued logically.

She had to concede that point, and that she had clearly given that away to him, as she had intended to do.

"Which is of course why you said it to me in the first place," John realised.

She smiled at him and the slight annoyance at himself.

"Do you know if Kolya knows the truth?" He asked.

"We were not aware of him being alive and a problem until last night," she reminded him.

He studied her closely. "Okay," he accepted. "So then either he just doesn't know about the niece, doesn't care, or knows for sure she isn't his."

Teyla considered her answer. "Any of those mean that she will be safe."

"Then why not tell Narro?" He asked.

"Because we do not know for sure what Kolya knows, and if he does attempt to reach the child, then we will capture him," she told him plainly.

"You're using the kid as bait?" John asked, some judgement apparent in his tone.

"Would it be more favourable to leave her unprotected and let Kolya slip her away unseen?" She asked him, a little surprised that he would question the decision.

John glanced out of the window himself, shrugging slightly, clearly not liking the truth of the matter. "Guess not, but it seems tough to bring a little kid into all this."

Teyla smiled gravely at him. "Unfortunately, this is far from the first time children are caught up in politics, as with Aki. Sometimes it has been an unofficial child that has formed or broken some alliance agreements within the Alliance."

"I guess," John considered philosophically as he looked back at her. He paused as if considering his next words. "You've mentioned some of the tensions within the Alliance before, as has Torren," he began carefully, "But I didn't really take that on board until today. Sitting in on those negotiations, there's clearly some factions forming within them all."

Teyla nodded, her mood lowering slightly at the truth of that fact. The idea of the Alliance cracking under its own internal pressure was worrying. "Father worries over it, however I believe that the ultimate ties between us all will hold out. It is in the fear of the Wraith that the Alliance was formed, and though that threat is not as strong in the Central worlds as it once was, the people as a whole remember."

John smiled at her point, surprising her again. "I wouldn't have pegged you as a romantic."

She frowned at him, though enjoyed the sudden shift between them from work to teasing. "How is such a thing romantic?" She asked.

"Thinking it'll all work out okay, that at their hearts everyone has a common goal," he replied, smiling softly at her. "Are all Elite such romantics at heart?"

She scoffed at that. "We have been described as many things, but 'romantic' has _never_ been one of them."

John shifted closer to her. "I don't know, it was pretty romantic the way we kept meeting, you saving my life-"

"Repeatedly," she injected.

As he moved closer to her, he slipped his hand around her waist. "Us randomly being on Pelydr that same evening..."

A deep and gentle warmth began to infuse out from the touch of his hand on her back. His body, closer to hers now, sent her senses buzzing. She watched as his gaze slid over her face and down to her chest, and it felt almost like a physical caress. The warmth grew stronger, spreading, and promising passion she had fast become rather addicted to of late.

"Are you suggesting that we are being drawn together?" She asked him softly, knowing the words and tone would entice. His eyes lifted back up to meets hers, his pupils dark and wide as he smiled.

"Maybe," he replied, his voice deeper, as it always became when he worked to seduce her. "Here we are alone together, again."

She had to smile at such blatant seduction on his part. She had not touched him yet, had not reached out across the small distance between them to feel his chest, his arms and shoulders.

"We are together here now because you arrived at my guest quarters, late at night," she pointed out, teasingly, "with one thing on your mind."

It was strange how things had been changing between them lately. When in their first month of regularly meeting each other on Tjaru, they had snuck away to find moments to be alone, barely reaching her quarters before they all but attacked each other. They had been joinings of intense fast passion that had felt like it had had to be expressed before they were found out. But, somewhere along the way, things had relaxed and they had begun this playful teasing foreplay. Both pretending they did not desire the other, even while clearly displaying the opposite. She was not sure why teasing him was so enjoyable, but it was. It was as if they matched wits as much as passion now. Perhaps it was because there were so many things they could not discuss with each other. Maybe it was because they wished to extend these short opportunities as much as possible.

"I don't know what you're implying," John responded instantly. "I'm just here to discuss politics." He smiled that wide sparkling smile that made something deep in her yearn to respond to his invitation instantly.

She held back though, for it was part of the game, and besides, she could not give into his seduction so quickly each time.

"Which we have done," she told him as she stepped aside, slipping out from his one armed loose embrace. "I would think you would be in need of rest, being so tired from your long day and difficult night last night," she teased as she moved slowly away across her quarters, pretending to take interest in the furnishings.

"I don't remember _anything_ being difficult about last night," he smoothly replied.

She looked over her shoulder to where he remained by the window, one forearm set casually on the windowsill, and smiled at his point. "I have had a long day," she told him though, "I have had much to do." She kept her tone playful.

"Yeah, it looked tough, standing watching everyone talking," he replied.

She lifted her eyebrows at him as she turned her way around the low central table set in front of several deep cushioned chairs. "I do find watching over you very demanded."

"You saying you were there just to keep an eye on me?" He asked with a pleased smile.

"You do continue to find yourself in all manner of troubles," she pointed out as she headed past the bed.

"It's been months since the last time," he objected. "Until last night," he amended.

"You would not include having to hide in my wardrobe as one such event?" She asked with a grin.

He pulled a face at that, "No, I wouldn't include hiding during your sister's impromptu visit as proper 'trouble'."

He pushed away from the windowsill and began to wander across the room, moving parallel to her through her quarters. He stalked her like this a few times around her quarters in Tjaru.

Tingling anticipation sparkled in her belly and breasts as she watched him move, enjoying the way the material of his trousers tightened around his hip as he walked, enjoyed the length of his thighs, and the thinness of his shirt across his broad chest. She itched to tear the clothes from his body, to the point that she clenched her teeth tightly.

He had seen something of that reaction in her though, for he stopped in the middle of her quarters and faced her.

He stood barely two metres away from her, the bed behind her, and a simple rug stretched out on the floor between them.

She glanced down at the rug, then back up at him, and smiled.

00000  
TBC


	4. Cold Shadows

**Chapter 4 – Cold Shadows**

The Lalwani base's cold walls passed quickly by on either side of her in a blur as Seeal marched through the corridor tunnels, intent and angry.

She had had to go through six Portals until she had felt safe enough to dial to a planet where she felt secure in visiting without the Elite chasing her. She had retrieved clean dry clothes and a weapon from a hidden stash in the back of a tea shop, the owner of which was an old contact of hers.

He had seemed shocked at her appearance when she had arrived through the back door of the shop, her hair wet and no doubt messed, and her eyes full of the adrenaline that had still been pounding through her veins.

She had remained there only long enough to drink a cup of calming tea with him before heading back to Lalwani. The transport trip from the Portal to the base had tested her patience further, and now sliding through chilled air, which always pulled at old harsh memories, she hunted Creass down in his 'office'.

He was sat at his overly large desk, boots crossed up on one corner and picking at his teeth with his thumbnail as he read from an electronic pad. He looked up with vague interest as she crossed the overly large room, moving through the shaft of sunlight pouring down through the single skylight window above.

"You're back early," he noted with as much interest as he wanted her to see. "Had enough of whatever male you had between your legs?" He had no idea what kind of male she had actually had tangled up in her legs. "You should find better meat to entertain you."

She marched up to the side of his desk and shoved his boots off the corner, and they slammed down to the marble cold floor sharply. He looked up at her with almost as much shock as she had experienced an hour previously. He had never seen her properly angry before, she usually had better control, but right now he was lucky she wasn't showing how truly angry she was.

"I will tell you what kind of male I have just left. An Elite warrior has just chased me off a planet."

Creass' eyebrows, already high from her small physical outburst, found more space to climb higher. "An Elite?" He asked as if she was speaking another language.

"Yes, hunted me through the streets of a town and I had to run for my life through the Portal." She was managing to keep her voice and tone reasonably under control, but had to clench her teeth to do so.

"Where was this?" Creass asked, appropriately alarmed now.

"Belsa," she informed him honestly. "The contact I met there confirmed that the Elite are responsible for the spate of dealer disappearances recently, but apparently the person they're really after, is _you_."

"Me?" Creass asked alarmed and angry.

"There are several tons of rose grain on fire on Litan because the Elite shut down the city to try and dig out any dealers who might have worked with you."

Creass cursed loudly, thumping his fist down onto the stone surface of his massive desk. "They destroyed Dreamstation for me, why are they hunting me now? Saoka deals in plain sight and I get this?!"

"They are hunting you because of Iketani," she informed him.

Creass looked back up to her, his dark eyes suddenly fearful. "Iketani? She's dead."

"Yes, killed by _them_, and now they're after anyone who harboured her."

"Wraith shit," Creass cursed, spitting phlegm through the air.

"And that High Councillor that was assassinated on Athos a few months ago, turns out that was her doing."

Blood began draining from Creass' face as he looked away, his eyes shifting back and forward as his mind worked hard and fast.

She leant closer, towering over him in his overly large chair. "You need to leave here, drop the deals and wait for this to pass."

"Leave?" Creass asked her as if she had asked him to grow two new arms.

"Yes," she insisted. "This isn't pressure that's going to go away anytime soon. You know as well as I do that soon enough the Elite are going to find someone who can tell them where you are. Then they will hunt you down and burn you out. You need to pull out of Lalwani, far out to a system that no one from before will predict."

He stared up at her, the heavy dark frown cutting a deep hollow down the centre of his forehead. "I'm not pulling out of anything. I'm not running again."

"It will be a tactical withdrawal, as with Dreamstation," she argued calmly.

"No," Creass insisted. "I will not give any more." She opened her mouth to argue again, but he shot up from his chair, forcing her to step back. "You know what we've lost in Dreamstation. If I start again, I'll have nothing left."

"You won't have _anything_ left if the Elite find you."

He narrowed his eyes, his expression hard and stubborn. "I didn't think I would ever see the day that someone frightened you. But, I guess it took being chased like a hog beast through a Portal to do it."

She straightened her shoulders and felt the cold chill of control completely slide over her. "The only reason why I'm not in an Elite holding cell now is the fact that it was raining so hard on Belsa. Without a stunner, I had to fight him hand-to-hand."

Creass' former mockery dimmed with that information. There were very few who could get away from an Elite in such a situation.

"It was only luck and a handful of dirt that got me off Belsa."

Creass turned and walked away from her, rubbing one hand over his short hair. "Do you think he knew you would be on Belsa?"

"I don't think so," she replied. There was no reason for Robiah to have handed her over to the Elite, it wasn't in his interests. And if he had wanted to, having had them waiting for her at the meeting point with him would have been the logical choice. "I think it was chance that I was there at the same time as he was, and that he got a look at my face." And that the Elite had actually recognised her.

Creass nodded as he turned back. "So, the Elite still have no idea where I am. There's no way they can find this place."

Seeal shook her head. "I don't think you realise the enormity of what I am telling you."

"I'm not about to lie down and let them do what they want to me," Creass shouted abruptly. "They took Dreamstation from me, but there's no way they're going to ruin me again."

"This isn't about profit and-"

"Yes it is, of course it is," he spat at her like she was stupid. "It's about profit and power. What else is there?"

She paused, suddenly understanding. "I thought Dreamstation was about creating your own world, your own business, and not bowing to any party for any reason." It had practically been his mantra over the last ten years on the station.

Dreamstation had always been about freedom, about there being somewhere where _anyone_ could be, unencumbered. There was no control, no restriction, except for the law of basics on Dreamstation - Don't kill, don't destroy anything, and don't mess with anyone. Those had been her rules that had kept Dreamstation running. How many times had she recounted those simple rules to various pieces of free-loving dangerous scum who had walked onto the station? Those three rules had been written across every docking section wall, reminding everyone entering of the simple law of Dreamstation.

Creass laughed. "Really? After all this time, that's what you still think, Seeal? What good is freedom if you can't have what you want?"

"And is this what you want, Creass? To keep hiding in the shadows from the predators hunting you?"

"I want my life back!" He shouted, the simmering resentment and anger of these past months now bubbling up into a full boil. "Who are these Elite to decide how I should live?"

She considered him, panting slightly from his emotional outburst. She had always had her own reasons as to why she had stayed on Dreamstation, and she had turned a blind eye to what Creass had going on with some using the station, after all her job had been security and nothing else. Yet, somewhere along the way she realised she had begun to believe that he might be better than that.

It was like Ulfur all over again.

How stupid was she? She should have left after he had been forced to leave Dreamstation, but that stupid loyalty... Why did she let it control her when no one was worthy of it? Why did she continue to make the same stupid mistake all through her life? Everyone looks out for themselves - she had always lived by that belief, but had forgotten it again. She hadn't listened to her instincts to get out, and instead had foolishly followed him off Dreamstation to Lalwani.

Well that would start changing now. The only thing left to do was to complete her role - to be his voice of security and reason, even if he then chose not to listen.

"Creass, we have worked together for a long time. I have saved your backside more times than you know," she told him levelly, evenly. He looked her, his lips pursed together. "I have always said what I think and you've valued that." He nodded faintly. "And now I'm telling you what I advise." She paused as she stepped forward to the edge of his desk, the wide cold flat surface between them. "You need to pull out of here, cut your ties, and wipe your hands clean, especially from Quantum."

Silence filled the large chamber as they stared at each other.

"I can't do that, Seeal," he replied finally, shaking his head.

She took a breath and let it out in a disappointed sigh.

"This Elite warrior has frightened you," he began with a tone that implied she was the one in need of calm reason. "Anyone would be the same, but you survived, because that's what you do so well. You fight, you keep order, and you stay in control. Why don't you take a few more days, let the adrenaline settle."

She watched him with exasperated disappointment as he returned to his chair and sat down without looking at her. How could she have been so foolish as to think yet another male in her life would not disappoint her, that it was possible to work with someone else without them turning on you.

"You'll return to your senses, realise that this was a one off event, and that you were lucky to escape, but work must continue."

He looked up at her from under his brow, not maintaining the eye contact for long. "Khor is heading in now to discuss the latest generation. He'll be here for a couple of days, and I know you don't particularly like him, so why don't you come back after that."

"Khor?" She asked in disbelief. "Have you not heard anything I've just told you?" She asked, more out of perverse curiosity to hear his answer.

"I'll maybe pull back on some of the other Quantum deals, okay?" He offered, but she already knew that he had planned to focus solely on dealing with Khor.

She turned and walked away.

She still had no set idea where she could go out from Alliance space, but it would take a few days to gather what she would need and plan how to safely and thoroughly jump right out of this life.

She had done her job, and now she had to get back to looking out for herself.

As she always had to do.

00000

Athosian sunlight shone down over the sand, softly lighting the open training area as John circled across it.

The handles of the Bantos rods sat warm and smooth in his grip. The weight of the rods shifting backwards, swinging round and up in whistling circles. Back, down and up again, his grip tightening on the handles again just enough to halt the spin. Warm wood, leather grip and the faint lip of the handles' hilts sat in his hands, linking him with the weapons, extensions of his arms, of his will.

He stepped slowly, smoothly, across the sand, circling. The low rise of sand he kicked up peppered down across the training area as he moved. Sunlight sliding over him, slipping behind his shoulder, casting long shadows between him and his opponent.

His view of her was almost obliterated by the sunlight, so bright and encompassing. Beauty merging with her as she slipped out into shadow again, her skin bare across her upper chest, arms, and her belly. Golden skin glistening faintly with moisture.

He watched her belly expand with her in breath, knew the texture of her skin, the warmth of living flesh, the scent of her womanhood.

Drawn by the promise of her, of the known pleasure, open and wet for him, he altered his circling, stepping forward into the shaft of bright light.

He had to close his eyes to protect his sight for a moment, and as shadows fell across his brow again, he parted his lashes.

Her outline was just visible enough and he moved towards her, the Bantos rods dropping from his hands as he reached out towards her. He heard them falling through the air, heard them impact the sand at his sides. They bounced perhaps behind him as he moved past, out of their reach, sand scattering around his bare feet.

High overhead he heard birds pass by in their massive flock, the slide of flowers turning towards sunshine, whilst he moved towards Teyla.

He reached forward, his empty hands before him, towards her, through the sunlight.

Only a spot of darkness arrived on his upturned hand. A drop of blood, the dark deep red of danger.

He knew it was already too late, he could hear it behind him, feel the droplets from above.

Shadows and darkness fell over the training area, twilight arriving in an instant, and it's savage hiss cried out behind him.

He could fight or run.

His hands empty, he kept moving forward, digging his toes into the sand, reaching out once again to where he had last seen her.

Her back was to him, the hilts of her sheathed swords just visible at her back.

He tried to call her name, to warn her, to beg her for help, but he felt the rake of claws beginning to dig into his back, slicing through his armoured vest. He could feel the cold promise of the feeding bite moving through his jacket, then his shirt.

Reaching out further, digging harder into the sand, he shouted to her, his fingertips just touching her closest sword hilt.

Only she turned, flashing movement towards him, body and face transforming and rushing violently up at him.

The screaming, partly blue scales of his own transformed face flew at him, claws scratching out at him, as behind him, the Wraith hand slammed down against his back, leaching out his life in an instant.

John snapped awake, reality falling into comforting solidarity around him.

He blinked up into the darkness, his breathing a little too fast, and the fear clawing at him still.

Licking his lips, he focused on the asymmetrical square of moonlight cast along the ceiling above him as the emotions and images from the nightmare began slipping away.

A soft, warm hand touched against his chest and he turned his head towards the touch.

Teyla appeared in the darkness, moonlight falling over one side of her face and her bare shoulder as she rose up onto her elbow.

"You were dreaming," she said quietly, her hand flattening on his chest. It was desperately comforting, chasing away the last of the nightmare and bringing him solidly into full consciousness, awake and alert.

"Yeah, sorry," he uttered, his voice broken and dry from sleep. He cleared his throat and ran a hand over his face and then up through his hair.

"A warrior's nightmare," she said with understanding.

Clearing his throat again, he rubbed his hand through his hair once more and dropped his head back down onto the pillow.

"Probably just from sleeping in a strange bed," he joked.

She smiled at him, one side of her lips more visible in the moonlight than the other. "Your bed seemed the same as this one."

He shifted on the mattress in her guest quarters, pulling himself up higher in the bed as he plumped up the pillow behind his head. "Doesn't feel as good as mine," he replied, making a show of trying to get comfortable on the softly sprung mattress.

The hand on his chest circled, the touch now casual and smooth. The comfort of her touch from before had gone, and, having been the only time he had felt such from her, he was left feeling both relieved and disappointed that it was gone.

Unsure what that meant, he slid his arm back around her, sliding his hand around her bare upper back. "Your bed in Tjaru is pretty good," he told her more just to have words to say.

He had expected her to settle back against her pillow and him, but she instead settled further up on her elbow, her hair loose and cascading over her shoulder. He reached across with his free hand and ran his fingers through the long tresses.

"It must be enjoyable to live in this city each day," she said softly into the dark and moonlight, her tone reflective.

"It's great," he replied softly, lowering his eyes to his fingers carefully arranging her hair over her shoulder, baring more of her skin and the rise of her breasts. "A little surreal at times still."

Her gaze slid to him, the shine of her eyes sparkling in the light. He felt a faint shivering memory from the dream, but it drained away almost as quickly as it had arrived.

"Do you miss your own world?" She asked him.

He didn't reply straight away, feeling the atmosphere of honest intimacy between them. They shared a lot of words between them, many of them teasing, playful, then flattering and demanding. In all the months he had known her, which he realised had to be getting on for at least a year now, they had talked a lot about their homeworlds, their peoples and cultures, but it wasn't the same as when you were lying in bed naked with someone. Alone together in the dark, no time constraint to pull them out of their shared bed tonight, it was just the two of them, open, vulnerable, and honest.

"I miss some things," he admitted as he brushed his fingertips across a patch of her bare skin, through shadows and light. "But, to be honest, Atlantis feels like my home now."

He saw her blink, her wide beautiful eyes assessing him. Her hand had stilled on his middle, her belly pressed against his side, her leg lying over his.

"It is more to you than a base of operations," she uttered and he nodded, watching the shine of her eyes. She was so beautiful, and here she was lying naked with him.

How had he gotten this lucky?

"It means more than that, yes," he replied, and inside he knew he was admitting to far more than that to her question.

She looked away with a soft sigh, looking towards the windows they hadn't pulled the curtains across. Her profile, now cast fully in the moonlight, caught at him, pulling at a deep vulnerable place in his chest.

"I would imagine living here to be very satisfying," she said with a smile.

He smiled, pleased she liked Atlantis, his eyes slipping down her throat, down to where the dancing line of black tattoos formed an arc down from the far side of her neck, down into the valley of her cleavage. Wraith tattoos, signs of battles and deaths each, but so elegant and flattering on her.

"Those who are staying here who have been displaced from their worlds," she continued, looking back round at him, "do some of them ask to remain living in the city?"

John let his eyes wander up to her lips and then to her eyes. "A few of them."

She smiled. "I am certain I can predict how Colonel Sumner responded to such requests."

"I'm not taking that bet," John replied with a grin as he slid his left hand over her upper back, under the warmth of her hair, in smoothing circles and idly caresses.

"Despite what many of them feel and say, there are many others who do welcome our protection from the Wraith," she said more seriously.

"I know," he replied. "The Alliance has done amazing things. It's hard to imagine what state this galaxy would be in if it didn't existed."

"The Wraith would rule this galaxy," she replied immediately.

He nodded.

"And many faces, families, and loved ones would be dead or would never have had the chance to be born," she continued.

He stroked a little higher up her back, stroking her hair a little as he did. "You don't need to convince me that the Alliance is a good thing."

"Of course not," she replied, her more usual Elite countenance returning, the emotional soft side of her pulling back, and he instantly regretted opening his mouth. "Without the Alliance, without the Elite, there would never have been the opportunity for all these people - Alliance, Atlantis, and others - to even argue over treaties and trade."

"I know," he replied carefully.

She sighed as she looked back towards the windows again, her profile appearing more stern and concerned than before, but no less beautiful to him. "Yet, it seems that many in the Alliance are forgetting that fact."

It was the most emotional outburst she had shared with him, the most open, honest and vulnerable he had ever seen her, except for that time on Athos when her family had almost been killed. She had had a rage in her then borne of a potent mix of fear, anger and relief. She had controlled it though, had focused that raging fury into action. Dealing with the petty concerns of treaties wasn't something for an Elite warrior to deal with, because you couldn't fight, force or threaten a peace treaty into being. Politics was a force unto itself and it seemed, despite her usual calm, focus, and Elite control, part of her struggled at seeing what the politicians were doing.

He could relate to that as he'd gone through something similar himself. It had been a decision of his own to turn back into enemy territory, against orders, or orders that hadn't been brave enough to be put into action, to save lives. He had failed though, had almost lost his own life and sanity to an Afghani prison, and when he had been freed he had returned home only to be chastised and dismissed by the Powers That Be. They had known he had been right to go back, deep down, he had known they did, but they couldn't officially condone his actions that had led to loss of equipment and had been a blatant disregard for official orders. He could understand that they had needed to punish him, he had accepted it, felt guilty over his decision even at times, but he still knew that he would still make the same decision again if he lived his life over again.

But then he probably wouldn't have ended up on the expedition to Atlantis if he hadn't made that mistake.

"It's not that they don't appreciate the freedom the Elite and the Alliance gives them," he said in as conversational tone as possible, instinctively knowing that if she sensed he was trying to make her feel better she would shut down on him. She had revealed a little more of herself this evening to him and he didn't want to risk losing that with her. "It's that they _have_ the freedom of choice to argue for what they want."

He watched her face carefully, keeping his hands still, not moving in a way that might be construed as 'comforting'.

"And as they do, they risk breaking what they have gained," she replied almost grumpily, and he relaxed, relieved he had said the right thing. For once.

"The Alliance is so big," he considered, "it must be hard to combine so many different views and ideals."

She nodded as she looked back from the windows, her body relaxing under his hands once more. "Too many interests that do not always combine well."

"What I don't get," he asked, "is what Edyis' deal is."

"He is the High Council's ambassador," she replied, "which means that he has conflicting interests to hold together as well."

John rolled his head to look up at her, frowning. "You taking his side?" he joked, though realised only after he had asked, that actually she _was_ on Edyis' side, not his own. Fortunately she only smiled at him.

"You held your own nobly against him. He is known to be close friends with Nolfi, the new High Councillor of Rosenthal, who took over from Garthew."

John sighed at that twist of fate. "Who actually liked us."

"Yes, he would likely have been a strong advocate for Atlantis in the High Council had he lived."

"If Iketani hadn't taken him out," John muttered. "What exactly is Nolfi and Edyis' problem?"

She shifted next to him, settling a little further down against the mattress, her upper body against his side. "What do all men in such positions want? Power."

"And fighting against us gives them power?"

"Because politically they can use you to control the High Council's views," she replied, folding her arms on his chest, one hand stroking his skin.

"What does that get them?" He asked exasperated. "Why so much hostility?"

"You need to remember that the Alliance, as you stated, is very big," she replied, calmly and slowly as if she were a teacher, which he guessed she was right now. "For almost a generation now, many have lived out of the shadow of the Wraith, and now they turn their focus to improving what they have on their own worlds. Without cullings and with the improvements to healthcare, populations have vastly increased, which means world and system leaders have more of their people to provide for. Therefore they have begun to think of their own peoples over others, putting their own needs above the whole. They do not know the fear and the cost of lives."

"You'd think they would hold together to make sure the Wraith don't come back."

"They trust in the might of the Military, in the Elite. They feel free, and as such they start to clash with others. Many of the old alliances that formed the Alliance are not secure as they were. The people who forged them, no longer sit in power, and their successors have other focuses. Many former alliances have dropped by the wayside. My father works hard to keep ties strong, which is easy enough in the trading groups, but those who live by might do not always appreciate those who feed them, or those that supply, forget those that keep them safe. They ask why they should pay so much..."

She drifted into silence, her point made.

"No wonder Iketani found it easy to manipulate so many in power," John muttered. "Turning them against each other."

"It is the nature of people to look out for themselves and those they value."

"Elite don't," John pointed out with a smile at her, lying against him, her breasts pressed against his ribs.

"Even we have preferences," she replied with a wide smile.

He lifted an eyebrow as he grazed his fingers across her back. "You including me in that group?"

"Perhaps," she replied with a more teasing smile, "But I cannot vouch for the other Elite's opinion of you."

He chuckled at her joke. "I only want to be on your preference list," he told her as he lifted his head and brushed his cheek against hers, grazing his lips against hers.

She sighed against him before their lips pressed tightly together. He held the kiss a beat longer than he had breath and pulled back, only to be lulled back into the sweet turn of her cheek and the warmth of her skin.

She murmured with easy arousal against his jaw as he pressed a kiss under her ear, down her throat.

Her hand slid across his chest, focusing on one nipple, turning small circles around it, sending sensations of pleasure deep into him.

He slid his hand up her back again, following the curving line of her spine up to the back of her neck, her hair lying over his forearm. He gently gripped the back of her neck in his hand as he angled his head to touch his mouth to hers again.

She met his kiss fully, her lips parting against his and her tongue danced against his.

As they kissed, deep and smooth, she rose up over him. He reached down to meet her leg as she swung her knee over his middle, sliding his hand over the curves of her thigh, hip, and backside as she settled astride him. He gripped her backside in both hands, feeling the warm open core of her waiting for him.

Her lips parted from his, and he opened his eyes to watch her sit up over him, moonlight shining over her shoulders, forming shadows between their bodies, but he could see well enough the dip of her belly button, the flatness of her toned stomach, the rise of her aroused breasts, the tight peaks of her nipples, and the long sliding line of tattoos, wrapping round her from throat to thigh.

"We have talked enough of politics," she said seductively, her voice deep and promising.

"Yeah, I think so too," he replied simply, his brain all but shutting down.

He reached up to the left side of her neck, touching his fingertips to the uppermost tattoo hidden right up under her left ear, and traced the line of ink patterns downwards, over her collarbone, down between her breasts, down under the right one, disappearing from view.

He slid his hand down to her left hip where the markings reappeared and followed them once more, in their arc around her hip, down to her thigh. As he stroked down the inside of her left leg, she reached between their bodies, teasing him in turn.

With a groan of pleasure, he closed his eyes at her touch, focusing on the heat and weight of her above and on top of him, the tight lock of her thighs on either side of him.

And then the deep wet sheath of her body, accepting and engulfing.

00000  
TBC


	5. New Behaviour

**Chapter 5 – New Behaviour**

As he had done each day on Atlantis, Halling had proceeded to the control centre of the Ancestral City that morning to dial out through the Portal to receive the first of the twice daily updates from the Alliance. It had been one of the main agreements between Atlantis and the Alliance that for the duration of these treaty talks that Alliance communication in and out of Atlantis would be overseen by the Elite. Halling had elected to do the work, and had arrived for the latest morning update only for the first received file to be marked for him as top priority.

The first part of the file had been a request for four new Alliance members to be allowed to join the talks. Halling had presented the request to Colonel Carter, who had looked somewhat tired in the early morning light of her office as she had sipped a hot dark coloured drink. She had agreed, but as before by using a third party Portal. Halling volunteered to go with the Atlantis team, for the second part of the priority file had been a request for his presence back in Alliance space for an Elite mission. He had honestly been quite relieved, for as beautiful as the city was, and its inhabitants fascinating, he had had more than enough of the squabbling ambassadors, so the mission had been most welcome.

After reporting the news to Teyla and Kari, he had left through the Atlantis Portal to the third party Portal, where the four new attendees for the treaty talks waited for their Atlantis security escort.

The four had been a surprising mix.

The first was a Genii law-speaker, sent presumably by Cowen to ensure that Hulte did as he was told to the letter. That would anger many, for it would imply that the Genii were not sharing everything they could and were instead standing only to the precise letter of Alliance law in what they did share.

The second new visitor was the worse news. Nolfi, High Councillor himself, had been 'elected' by the High Council to be their representative for the rest of the treaty talks. Though Edyis was their official ambassador, after the attempted assassination it seemed that the High Council wanted one of their own to be present for the treaty talks. Nolfi' presence would not be favourable to the negotiations.

However, some possible good news came in the form of the final two new delegates who were two Military Councillors. Halling suspected the Military Council had heard of Nolfi' plans to involve himself in the treaty talks, so they had sent in their own to bring balance. Of course the official reason for their arrival would be the assassination attempt.

They were good choices as well. Fe-Rrara, of the Dabarosan system worlds, had been on the Military Council since its formation. Her dyed dark green hair was, as usual, pinned back with red ribbons woven into the tresses. Her military uniform was smartly and clearly newly pressed, and she wore more insignia than he had ever seen her wear before.

The other was Tyre, a highly respected Satedan commander, who Halling had known for many years. Tyre immediately reached out to clasp Halling's forearm in the Satedan greeting.

"It is good to see you, Honoured Elite," Tyre welcomed with his big bright grin.

"Tyre, I had heard you had been set into the Council seat for this month," Halling replied with a grin of his own as he clasped Tyre's thick forearm in turn.

"Only due to a minor injury," Tyre insisted as they released each other. "Ronon is off losing sleep over his newborn, so I have had the honour this month."

"I had heard the good news of his new son," Halling replied. "He is presumably as strong as his parents."

"And as stubborn, neither of them have slept since his birth," Tyre laughed. "But, I think I would prefer holding a crying newborn to this venture."

Fe-Rrara moved closer to them. "Honoured Elite," she greeted, her smile formal but warm. "He has been complaining throughout the last two hours that we have waited for confirmation to be allowed to join the delegation in Atlantis."

"There was no one to spar with," Tyre replied as explanation. "I did offer Nolfi a fight," he added quieter, but not quietly enough not to carry to Nolfi stood a few metres away, who no doubt was listening in. "The High Councillors should spent more time witnessing such truths of the Military life more often in my opinion."

Halling did not look round to see Nolfi' reaction, but nodded faintly to Tyre in agreement. "I am sorry that I cannot support you through your venture in Atlantis, but I have been summoned away for a mission."

"Something interesting?" Tyre asked with hope in his eyes.

"I suspect it will either have something to do with the outer Lantana battle, or they wish me to rein in Oneakka somehow."

Tyre laughed at that. "I think you will have far more success by yourself with the first option, but either of them sounds much more enjoyable than this. Tell Oneakka he still owes me a barrel that I won from him in cards. I haven't forgotten and I _will_ demand my payment soon."

"I will remind him for you. Once you are free from your duties, stop by the Training Facility, it will be good to catch up properly with you."

"Training Facility?" Tyre replied doubtfully, "It'll be taverns on Belkan for us. I expect Oneakka, Si, and Massa to be there as well."

"I will see if I can persuade Massa to join us, but he has his own young babe to look after now."

Tyre nodded quietly at that. "Of course. But, it would be good for him, considering all that's happened, and he can find a babysitter for one night."

"One?" Halling replied doubtfully.

"Fine, two if you include time for the hangover."

Halling chuckled. "I do not think Belkan will welcome us again after last time."

"That was nothing, Belkan is used to Satedan drinking parties, we were nothing compared to those."

"I am not sure that last tavern owner would agree," Halling replied as he looked over his shoulder to where the Portal back to Atlantis had been activated. It was time for them to leave. "May the Ancestors walk with you both in Atlantis," he told Tyre and Fe-Rrara.

"Ancestors, you can keep them," Tyre replied as he turned back towards the Portal. "We'll keep things in order," he added more quietly for Nolfi had moved ahead to be first through the Portal to Atlantis.

Halling watched them leave, hoping that the new additions might indeed help balance out the issues being argued over in Atlantis and not destabilise things further.

But it was not his concern right now. He had a mission. As soon as the Portal shut down, he dialled up the address that had been listed on the mission request.

Manaria was a small world, but central in the Alliance. The planet provided a transport hub as well as supporting and maintaining the many communication satellites and stations in the sector that were linked in with the vast Alliance network.

As Halling stepped through onto Manaria, he immediately spotted the small neat formation of Manarian soldiers stood at sharp attention opposite the Portal.

"Honoured Elite," the captain greeted formally before he marched forward three steps and halted sharply. He extended an electronic pad. "This was left for you."

Halling accepted the pad as he wondered how long the soldiers had been waiting for his arrival.

The captain clapped his hands loudly – the Manarian salute, which Halling still found overly dramatic. "Is there anything you require, Honoured Elite?"

"No, this will be fine, thank you, Captain," he replied.

Another clap was quickly echoed by the entire formation of soldiers before they turned as one smart group and marched away, backs straight and true.

Halling moved away from the Portal, aware of others waiting to use it.

He pressed his thumb on the pad's sensor and typed in his own passkey when it asked for it.

His mission was displayed immediately. It was very short, and would more accurately be described as a demand rather than a mission.

Oneakka was waiting for him in one of the closest transport stations.

At least it took Halling away from babysitting arguing politicians.

He made his way to the appropriate station using one of the floating transports, in which half the cabin had kept an overly respectful distance from him, and then a moving floorway to the section of the station Oneakka had indicated.

This transport station was essentially a hangar. Massive and open on two sides for incoming and outgoing transport craft, it had enough space for the Sythus to sit inside twice over. There was little in the way of formal arrangement here, just areas designated for parking and outlined safe walking zones. Halling headed for the far side of the hangar, predicting Oneakka would use the most strategically located parking zone.

He found Oneakka easily enough. He was stood, arms crossed and his eyes still faintly red, leant against a low dividing wall that held warnings in various languages that pedestrians should beware low flying craft. Halling felt that was somewhat ironic.

Halling had read Oneakka's report yesterday evening of the events on Belsa, and had already devised some well worded teasing comments to use about the issue. However, for now, Oneakka looked like he would bring down death upon anyone who spoke to him. Passing pedestrians were noticeably altering their progress to leave a wide expansive space around Oneakka as they hurried through the transport station to and from their craft.

Oneakka, when in his foulest of moods, seemed to literally emanate aggression. Halling was almost used to it, but it seemed that over these past few months, Oneakka's mood was growing darker with each passing day. His self imposed single-handed hunt for Creass and others who had harboured Iketani had been progressing slowly, and that had not helped his mood. He appeared to have taken on personal responsibility for the hunt and for bringing punishment for what had happened on Athos.

Oneakka had always been one to talk about consequences, usually putting himself in the role of consequence and the Wraith in the 'cause' category. He was almost like a force of nature, throwing himself into any situation to bring consequence on those who deserved it. It was likely, in Halling's opinion, that this tendency was a consequence itself of what had happened to Oneakka in his youth. His people, all slaughtered by a single Hive, leaving him the last of his people, and despite his own young years and incomplete Elite training at the time, he had set out to destroy the Hive that had killed his home. And he had done it, singlehandedly literally destroying the entire Hive base the Queen had constructed on the ruined remains of his world, Ugun. Oneakka had killed the Queen and all she had produced, but had been nearly fatally wounded in doing so.

He had lain in high level healing isolation for weeks afterwards, to finally emerge physically scarred but also damaged in ways that no eye could see. It had not broken him though, but it had perhaps set him on a course of blind furious determination, so that if anyone committed such acts again, he would be there, avenging those struck down. Halling believed that drove Oneakka in almost all he did. Perhaps his latest personal mission was due to the victims having nearly been Teyla's family, who Iketani had targeted. Teyla was the closest to a sister he had perhaps ever had, or maybe it had been Oneakka's fury at Iketani' betrayal, but it seemed this was a wrong that he was determined to personally right. In whatever way was necessary. The latest report from Litan was that the Western city was still at a standstill with Enforcement unpicking the mess of dealers and buyers Oneakka had flushed out. Apparently the rose grain had finally stopped smouldering yesterday evening and the entire city was said to smell strongly of roasted rose grain.

Oneakka had never been one for subtleties.

"You're late," Oneakka announced loudly once Halling was close enough, which frightened the quickly passing pedestrians.

"You said to come as soon as I could, how can I be late?" Halling replied as neared his friend.

"I've been here four hours," Oneakka replied, which Halling suspected to be exaggeration.

"Four hours?"

As Halling reached his side, Oneakka turned to his left and they walked together across the wide space of the transport station. People parted in a wide oval ahead and behind them as they passed.

"I was here for something else as well," Oneakka admitted.

"More rose grain that needed setting alight?"

"That wasn't me," Oneakka protested, but there was a touch of uncertainty in his voice. Halling looked at him. "I might have thrown the man with the flaming torch into the grain, but it wasn't my fault he'd been holding it in the first place."

Typical Oneakka logic.

"And where are we going now that is so important?" Halling asked having already spied the Elite Transport craft ahead, which presumably Oneakka had asked the others if he could borrow to get here.

"Robiah has a case," Oneakka replied as he triggered open the side hatch of the craft and climbed inside.

Halling followed him in, sliding into the co-pilot seat and triggering the hatch closed as Oneakka started up the craft's engines. "And he invited _you_ to join him, or you just happened to be in his office, badgering him again about finding Creass, when his case came in?"

With efficient, but less than graceful piloting, Oneakka lifted the craft up from the ground and pointed it out to the open side of the massive station. "That didn't happen this time," he replied as they headed up into the bright sky, sliding past incoming shuttles and other transport craft. "He contacted me."

"Does he have Creass?" Halling asked hopefully.

Though Oneakka's obsession was something to stay out of, the outcome was still of interest to all the Elite. It was perhaps just that few Elite believed that Oneakka would actually be able to find Creass. He was too loud, heavy-handed and blunt to find the slithery criminal. Halling liked to hope otherwise though, for no other reason than to see Oneakka achieve his self-imposed mission.

"No," Oneakka muttered bitterly, "like he would actually try. This is something Quantum related."

Halling nodded with interest as they fell into companionable silence as Oneakka navigated their craft around others, skipping ahead in the clear queue forming through the upper atmosphere of Manaria. Up into the black of space over the planet, the queue became more obvious, stretching out towards the orbiting Portal. As Elite they had the right of use, but a High Council craft was still dialling out, so they would wait.

Quantum. By the Ancestors why did it not just disappear?

Originally developed by the Elite themselves, the drug had been designed to help Seekers learn to open their minds to reading the Wraith, learn how to control Wraith minds, and how to develop their own mental barriers. Quantum opened up consciousness like nothing else, but the original drug had been controlled, carefully administered and the Seeker using it had been carefully guided by another to develop what was needed. But, somehow it had slipped out of their control. They had never been able to find proof of who had betrayed the formula out of Elite hands, but it was now of general consensus that it most likely had been Iketani' doing. If not by her own hands, then someone she had manipulated into doing her bidding. She had been very good at doing that.

However it had reached the outside worlds, the Quantum that was being manufactured and sold out between Alliance worlds, was not the same as the original drug. It had been altered and carefully developed over the years by various suppliers into a highly addictive and uncontrolled experience for its user. Anyone taking it had their consciousness ripped open, letting them feel everything to the extreme. Users felt as if they were one with the universe, and every single experience they had ever had, stored but un-accessed before in their minds, was released all at once. And in that fact, the new suppliers had worked some magic, developing the drug to prohibit negative memories and feelings. The user only felt the good they had ever felt, only remembered the bright dazzling moments of their life, and in such extreme and overriding delight that they lose themselves in the sensations, lying still for hours, sometimes for days. There were plenty of deaths from Quantum because while high the users didn't care about their physical wellbeing at all. Users could lie still for hours or days whilst the temperature around them dropped below freezing, and sometimes not having eaten for days so they could afford the drug. Their bodies, abandoned by their logical mind, died without the user even aware of how much danger they were in.

The Elite had attempted to control the spread of the original Quantum, but it had stretched far beyond their reach even before its leak had been realised. In all things, humans could be trusted to like what was bad for them, it was a fact of life, and Quantum played on that truth like nothing else before. Halling almost felt sorry for the users, not that the knowledge of its risks wasn't publically known now. That it had originated from the Elite was not known however and would never be.

"And why have you invited me along?" Halling asked as, the Portal now free, Oneakka dialled an address into the panel, sending the orbiting Portal alight as it activated. Halling didn't recognise the address.

"Because this is big, and official. Robiah has cordoned off the scene entirely, wouldn't give any more information." Oneakka replied as he powered through the freshly opened wormhole. "The Investigation Division have officially called in the Elite."

"About a Quantum related incident?" Halling asked, confused. The wormhole had brought them out into orbit of a system that Halling had never visited before. "Where are we?"

"Furthest edge of the Adaima system," Oneakka replied as he turned the nose of the craft round and several patrolling Military ships came into view.

"The Military are here," Halling noted unnecessarily.

"He said this was big, don't know why, but it is."

"And Robiah called _you_?" Halling asked with more confusion.

"Maybe my frequent visits to his office for updates put me first in his mind," Oneakka replied with a smile.

At least Oneakka was talking and making jokes, which was far from how Teyla had been back in Atlantis. It had been another reason why Halling had been rather pleased to leave the Ancestral City since his confrontation with her yesterday. Time would mend the tension between them, but for now, Teyla had been none too pleased at his comments on her ongoing secret affair with Major Sheppard.

It hadn't taken long for Halling to see that something had changed between the pair, and that it might be one reason why she had been spending so much time on Athos of late, where those from Earth had been visiting twice weekly. Her absence from her guest quarters, late at night, on the first night in Atlantis, had only confirmed his hypothesis. Her saving Sheppard from his near assassination had been a fortunate consequence of that affair, but Halling had felt compelled to speak to her about his concerns.

He had not been prepared for how dramatically she had reacted, and how hurt she must have been to react that way. They had never exchanged such harsh words with each other in the long number of years they had known each other. She was a childhood friend, and one he thought he could speak his mind to, but on the subject of sex, it appeared that even the closest of friends could turn on you.

He looked at Oneakka beside him. They had almost broken their own strong friendship because of a female Elite. One they had both cared for. Halling had loved Methren, and her loss was still a painful ache in his chest when thinking of her. She had known about his and Oneakka's affections for her, and she had seen that the jealousy had been growing between them. She had said she would make a decision over their future, but she never had the chance to officially make her choice clear, for in the next battle she had been killed by a Wraith. He and Oneakka had fought viciously afterwards, both angry with the other for seemingly denying them the time they had felt due with Methren before she had been lost. Halling still believed that what he had shared with Methren had been deeper and more openly shared than how Oneakka had cared for her. But, perhaps Oneakka felt the same.

Oneakka hated not getting his way, and seeing Halling moving in on a woman he had plans for, had angered him. At least that was the way Halling remembered what had happened. He and Oneakka had never discussed it, other than in their aggressive arguments soon after Methren's death. Time had passed though, and the wounds between them had healed, and he and Oneakka were back to their former friendship, one that perhaps was now even stronger for the damage it had taken. He could only hope that Teyla would not hold his comments against him forever.

Ahead, hanging in a low elliptical orbit around the system's sun, the planet that was Oneakka's target loomed larger and closer. Oneakka never respected the Military's slow atmosphere descent protocols, and Halling watched as clouds filled their view, the transport craft racing down towards the planet's surface.

With nothing to see, Halling automatically dropped his gaze to the displays set across the panel. The readings of the planet showed low oxygen and high sulphur for a habitable world. Halling reached out and triggered more readings. Outside the clouds parted and the planet's surface rushed up towards them, but Oneakka skilfully pulled up the craft's nose and powered on through the sky.

The planet looked next to dead, its surface dull and dry, and there seemed to be no vegetation other than some scraggily fibrous scrub that poked up from the soil like fingers reaching up for a rare droplet of rain. Looking out across the near dead landscape, Halling could see signs of the cause though. Though weathered, likely by an occasional rain season and the wind, there were lifted edges of craters, not from asteroid impact but from weapons fire. This was what the Wraith did as a last resort to a planet. They killed the world, destroying all life, or perhaps draining it in someway as they did life from people. This was how civilisations were forgotten – all of them slaughtered by the Wraith for whatever it was that they had done, but this appeared to be a quite extreme case.

He activated a few scans, pulling up decay readings, but the erosion of the craters already suggested that this planet had been attacked a very long time ago. The faint readings the craft's sensors could capture fed into the computer and a prediction came up suggesting that the planet had been attacked several thousand years ago. It was likely that no one would even remember tales of what these people had been called.

Halling glanced at Oneakka out the corner of his eye. This would be similar to Oneakka's own homeworld. The Ugun, defiant and strong people, had all been slaughtered and the planet, a harsh world already by all accounts, had been devastated.

Halling wondered if Oneakka made the comparison as well.

"There," Oneakka said, lifting his chin a fraction towards the view outside.

Halling looked out to see a rise in the landscape ahead, and set around it was a large arrangement of Enforcement and Military transport craft.

Oneakka angled the craft in a smooth line sliding forward and past what appeared to be the focus of the gathering – two metallic doors set into the side of the rise in the landscape. As they passed over the doors, Halling studied the rising hill that held the doorway. From the angle of the rise, the break in the fibrous planets at its foot, he concluded it had been constructed. It had been good work and given a few wind storms, the dead planet's dry soil would have moulded further around the new hill, melding it seamlessly into its natural landscape.

"No small feat," Halling uttered as Oneakka set the craft down onto the planet.

Oneakka nodded, agreeing in the assessment, having come to the same conclusion as Halling.

"Could this be another example of one of Iketani' bunkers?" Halling suggested.

"Think Robiah would have mentioned her if it was," Oneakka replied as he powered down the craft.

Halling wasn't so convinced, but then he had never interacted with the Investigator himself. Oneakka, on the other hand, had likely made Robiah's life a misery over the last few months. Robiah was a top end investigator, having been involved in arrests of drug suppliers, dealers, as well as the mirage of other sins that were committed in the Alliance and its border planets. Oneakka however had demanded that all Robiah's resources to be directed on finding out where Creass had run to and to find anyone who had helped Iketani in her betrayal. Oneakka had made regular, personal visits to Robiah's office demanding updates and openly accusing the investigator of dragging his heels. Robiah for his part, from what Halling had heard, had put up more of a confident response than most, which was perhaps why he had been suggested by his superiors to be the Elite's contact within the Investigation Division. Robiah was apparently a very capable, calm and clever man in his dealings with others, but Halling suspected that Oneakka had pushed the man to his limits, if Robiah's repeated recent convenient absences from his office when Oneakka randomly visited were any indication.

But today, Robiah had called Oneakka to a crime scene. Something significant had occurred.

Halling glanced at Oneakka again, who had not yet moved out of the pilot's seat. Oneakka was blinking rapidly and squeezing his eyes shut, encouraging the excess fluid out from his red eyes before leaving the craft.

Oneakka grumbled a sigh as he wiped his watery eyes, using a small cloth to dry the tears he had produced.

"Grains still in your eyes?" Halling asked.

"No, it's the damn drops."

Halling nodded with understanding. "Better to withstand the preventative treatment than develop an infection from something that had been in that dirt."

Oneakka growled as he shoved the cloth back into a concealed pocket in his belt. "Can't they develop eye drops that don't sting, seems stupid," he muttered as he rose from the pilot's seat and triggered open the craft's hatch.

Halling followed him out, stepping out into the thin air of the dead world, and subtly glancing at Oneakka's eyes. They glistened with more moisture than usual, but did not look too red. Oneakka would not want anyone asking him what had happened – he was already angry enough at having let Creass' bodyguard slip through his fingers. After months of determined searching for scraps of information on Creass, he had inadvertently walked into the bodyguard, Seeal, but hadn't been able to capture the woman. That fact said something about the woman's fighting skills, but that was not a good thing to comment upon in front of Oneakka.

Oneakka strode forward and Halling fell into step with him, using his longer legs to eat up the difference. Though a few inches shorter than Halling, Oneakka still always seemed to be able to walk faster.

Ahead, stood around the wide open heavily reinforced doors set into the manufactured hillside, a good handful of Investigation personnel were waiting for them, stood tall and straight. As he and Oneakka approached, another man appeared out of the doorway, dressed as a civilian but wearing the insignia of an Investigator. The man moved forward to meet them, his expression calm, unlike the somewhat nervous pinched looks on the others' faces. Most were nervous around Elite.

"Honoured Elite, thank you for coming," the man greeted them and Halling assumed this was the infamous Robiah, though he did not introduce himself.

"What have you got?" Oneakka demanded as he and Halling reached the investigator.

"Something unusual and worrying," the man replied. He was very calm, in control, and didn't appear overly intimidated by Oneakka as he walked with them to the open doorway.

Halling moved ahead though, heading for the closest door itself. "Fully sealable, locking mechanism on the inside, fifteen code," he muttered as he ran his hand along the edge of one door, feeling how thick it was. Someone had built this to last and to hold against almost any invasion.

"And no damage at all," the man replied as he arrived at Halling's side. "There are three inner doors as well, working like pressure hatches." He moved forward into the doorway, leading them inside the manufactured hillside. "This place is called Haven, which is highly ironic,"

As they moved inside, Halling angled his head to catch Oneakka's attention, who walked a pace behind him, and mouthed the question "_Robiah?"_ Oneakka nodded briefly before looking away to study the first inner doorway they were passing through.

The smell of death registered on Halling's senses. It was a strange mix though, highly potent yet also with a very familiar twisted edge to it that Halling knew all too well.

"We've counted six hundred and twelve so them," Robiah continued as they moved through the second inner door. "All were high on Quantum when they died, we believe flying on the new generation we've heard far too many rumours about but never actually seen until now."

The last inner doorway also stood open ahead, the smell of speeded decay thick in the air, and he could now identify the extra element to it mixed, which was the deeper repulsive smell of expelled bowels. Users defecated and urinated without realising when lying almost coma like on their high. The smell implied they had started their last flight several days ago, and with over six hundred of them, the air was putrid. No wonder all the doors had been left standing open and so many investigators were lingering around outside.

Just inside the final doorway a metal landing overlooked a massive chamber – the centre of the fake hillside. Halling stepped up to the railing alongside Robiah and looked down at the floor of the chamber, but he didn't see what he had expected.

They were all dead, as he had predicted from the smell, all laid out on their prepared bedding, their heads on pillows and arms laid out at their sides.

But, they had all been fed upon.

Wraith had killed all these people, not the Quantum.

Oneakka moved away, heading swiftly down the metal sheet staircase that led down to the floor of death below. "The feeding marks," he said over his shoulder.

Halling looked over the railings as he followed Oneakka and almost paused in his steps. Each of the dead had more than one feeding mark, the sites obvious by the tear in clothing and the stain of blood around it. It was very rare for Wraith to share a victim, not unless they were starved and had to ration their meals between large numbers. Clearly supply of food had not been an issue in here, so it was a striking feature. However, that was not the strangest fact about the feeding marks across all those laid out below. There were feeding marks on the victims' heads. Halling, in all his years, had never seen a Wraith feed from such a place. The chest, belly, sometimes the back, even from the limbs on occasion, but never from the head.

This was very different indeed.

"From what we've seen so far," Robiah reported as he followed down the steps behind Halling, "each victim has at least five feeding marks. Some of the feeding was from the chest, perhaps the first strike, but the test results are not definitive on that yet."

Oneakka had reached the floor and was striding away down the closest avenue of dead, looking over the victims with a fast experienced eye. The Investigation Division staff held back as he passed, pausing in their recording and gathering of evidence.

Halling reached the floor and wrinkled his nose at the overwhelming rush of the mix of smells down here. The thick bedding under the victims, though possibly once having been designed to be supportive and absorbent, were all saturated full with their fluids, ironically so considering their bodies were withered and dried up from the Wraith feeding. It was a noticeable point, for there really was too much fluid loss even for users, which meant that they had likely died slowly while under the influence of the Quantum, their body slowly releasing the fluids all.

"The deaths were too long," he muttered as he moved down the lines behind Oneakka. "The Wraith took their time." Another strange behaviour.

"The initial results we have back suggest the feeding lasted up to six hours," Robiah reported in a level tone as he followed behind.

This was certainly not common behaviour for Wraith. Halling looked away from the bodies to the pools around them, seeing partial prints from boots in the mess as it had dried.

Ahead Oneakka had crouched down by a body, peering closely at the remains. A rough jerk of his head was a request for Halling to join him.

It was difficult to find a place enough to crouch down without putting his boots or knees into the mess around the woman before them. She had been mummified by the feeding process as normal, but it was clear that she had not struggled in her final moments. Her body remained in a relaxed position, her arms laid to her sides and her head on a decorated pillow. They had been easy pickings for the Wraith.

"See the size of the feeding marks," Oneakka said, indicating several of the six marks on the woman's body, spread out across her abdomen as well as on her head. "They're all the same size, and see here, the way the thumb bite kinks in, and the same on this one, and this one?"

Halling frowned with surprise as he saw the same feature to the deep feeding wound repeated across the woman's left cheek. "Just one Wraith fed on her all six times," he voiced the conclusion.

"Torture?" Robiah asked from where he stood close by, peering closely.

"When high on Quantum there is no point," Halling replied. "They would not feel any pain of the feeding for the torture to mean anything."

Oneakka inhaled loudly as he sat back from his examination of the body. Halling recognised the look on his face – he had formulated a theory. Oneakka looked up at Robiah. "Everyone fed on was high on Quantum?"

"No," Robiah replied. "There were two men in the kitchens at the back, both fed on as normal and there were clear signs of a struggle, including a small pool of Wraith blood on the floor."

Halling stood up from over the dead woman and looked round at Robiah. The man had a strange way of supplying information. His initial report at the entrance had been far from a complete official report. He had not told them any of the significant facts of the case, instead had just shown them the scene and only now was telling them there had been Wraith blood discovered. That fact should have been supplied to them at the start for it would be vital identifying information as to which genetic Wraith line were responsible for this.

Robiah instead had held back the information, had told them little since they had arrived.

He had wanted to see their reactions.

It said a lot about him.

Oneakka had complained bitterly about Robiah's lack of advancement in tracking Creass' organisation once out of Dreamstation, and now Halling saw for himself that he should have taken Oneakka's assessment more seriously. That Robiah worked in such a way was part of his work style perhaps, but when dealing with Elite, all levels of the Alliance were expected, and always did, supply everything they could. There was no area of the Alliance, other than the High Council's private meetings, that Elite did not have access. And even if an Elite did choose to sit in on a High Council meeting no one would have questioned their right.

Robiah appeared to think and work differently, which implied that he either did not respect the Elite, or that he felt his own work above them.

Either option had the same outcome that he was not to be trusted. Oneakka had been right about this man.

"We are testing the blood," Robiah continued, "looking for genetic markers to work out which genetic branch of the Wraith it came from, but preliminary results have discovered small amounts of Quantum bonded into receptor cells in the sample."

"It is not surprising that the drug passed from the user into them," Halling replied, but he already understood Robiah's theory. "You believe they were being affected by the Quantum."

"We have no idea how the drug works on Wraith," Robiah replied. "Maybe they get high from it too. Why else would there be so many feeding marks over such a long period of time?"

Halling frowned at the suggestion, something they had never seen in Wraith behaviour before.

Oneakka moved away from them, studying several more bodies close up. "We know exactly how Quantum affects Wraith," he stated in a tone to make it clear that Robiah should know that Elite knew everything there was to know about the Wraith.

"This new generation may be different," Robiah argued. "This is the first sampling we have had of it, it can't have been tested on any Wraith yet."

"Why the feeding marks on the head?" Oneakka asked in response to the argument, not confirming in any small way that the Elite were currently ignorant on Robiah's point.

Robiah looked down at the bodies around him. "It is unusual, but so is this overall behaviour. If they are being altered by the Quantum, their behaviour may be different."

It was a valid argument enough, but Oneakka grunted from where he crouched over another body. "Why no signs of struggle at the entrance?" He asked as he leant over a male victim's head, studying the feeding wounds at his temple and cheek.

Robiah glanced up at the entrance way set high up in the chamber's wall and Halling caught the faintest edge of exasperated impatience in the man now. Oneakka's questions were annoying him, but he was trying to hide it.

"We believe either the Wraith came in before the doors were sealed-"

"Why build a fortress and then leave the doors open while you fly and are vulnerable?" Halling pointed out.

"And unlikely explanation," Robiah replied. He did not like to be corrected. "It is possible that these people were worshippers and had agreed to this, but then that is unlikely considering the extent of work put into building Haven, and the signs of a fight in the kitchen. But the doors must have been opened from the inside. Perhaps a Wraith was hidden inside Haven, maybe the one that killed the kitchen staff."

"Or there was at least one Wraith worshipper in here to open the doors," Oneakka suggested as he stood up and moved on to another body, not looking in Robiah's direction at all.

"Also possible," Robiah agreed.

"And more likely," Halling said, "This is a freshly manufactured bunker – for its first use there would be few places to hide unseen for a Wraith."

"And how would they have known Haven was here?" Oneakka asked as he examined more head wounds. "No Wraith in this sector, no Portal on the planet. Someone told them about it."

Robiah angled his head in agreement.

"How long have the rumours of the new Quantum been around?" Oneakka asked next.

"A month perhaps, but suppliers are always suggesting that new more improved generations will soon be available to those that pay."

"Seems a coincidence," Oneakka said.

Halling moved between bodies, following Oneakka now. "That this is the first example of the new Quantum and the Wraith might be affected by it."

Oneakka looked up at him from the floor and nodded.

"You think they're behind it?" Robiah asked after a beat having interpreted Oneakka's silent conclusion.

Halling looked round at him. "This could be a test run, see if the new generation works as they intended."

Robiah frowned and then nodded. "Logical enough."

"No," Oneakka stated as he stood up, turning to them both. "Wraith don't get high."

"Maybe these ones do," Robiah replied.

"Why would they?"

Robiah laughed lightly. "Why do any of these people use it? Because it feels good."

Oneakka looked at Halling. "There has to be a purpose to the development of the new drug, if they are behind it. Quantum opens consciousness – why would Wraith want that?"

Halling understood suddenly what Oneakka was suggesting.

The air felt faintly chilled around him as he looked round at the bodies. "That is a worrying thought."

"The head wounds would make sense then," Oneakka said.

Halling nodded. "This is not good," he uttered as a clear understatement. "There is a chance the drug is not yet perfected. We have no idea if these 'tests' were successful."

"They could have been altering the drug here and applying it to the users, they had the time," Oneakka replied. "There would be no evidence until we get blood screens back."

"I don't understand," Robiah interjected.

Halling pulled out a scanning pad, triggering it alive with a press of his thumb. "We will need samples of all the victims, some of the Wraith blood, samples of any and all Quantum there is here."

"What is your theory?" Robiah asked, not agreeing immediately with the order.

"We need to test this new generation and find out what it does differently," Halling said, ignoring Robiah's repeated question.

However, Oneakka turned towards the investigator. "Tell us who supplies this new Quantum."

"There are rumours, possible names," Robiah replied. "I don't understand what it is you are suggesting the Wraith are developing."

Halling looked up from his pad where he tapped in information and captured images of some of the bodies for him to immediately take back with him to the other Elite.

"Quantum opens a user's consciousness, their mind, memories and thoughts. Wraith can read minds, but the results are not always successful and it is only current thoughts that they can capture." He did not need to go on because he could see the paleness pass over Robiah's features, for he understood the depth of this if it was true. "If they can access a user high on Quantum in the right way, perhaps they could have access to all their thoughts, ever."

Robiah looked away, his eyes moving fast, calculating the number of people in here as Halling had already done.

"If every one of these people had had their thoughts read entirely, the wealth of information the Wraith could already have discovered was overwhelming. They could have Portal addresses to half the Alliance worlds, know names and faces of who knows what - passwords and hidden information.

"If this drug is spread into the community," Robiah considered, "any using it could be read entirely."

"And that isn't including those who had their tea or water supply spiked with it by a worshipper," Oneakka pointed out. If such were the case, then anyone in the Alliance could be targeted. Halling chilled to think what information the Wraith could acquire if the theory was correct - Military secrets, codes, tactics, skills – there would be no limit to what they could learn.

"If this is true, then this is a far worse problem than I initially thought," Robiah said softly, his eyes wide.

"We need all information you have on who is said to be supplying this new generation of Quantum," Halling told him. "Get identities for all these victims, someone they know or dealt with has to have information. They had to have someone as a contact to get this Quantum."

Robiah nodded. "I may already have a name for you. Khor. He is said to be the sole manufacturer of the new generation, but that is unconfirmed as yet."

"Who gave you that information?" Oneakka asked.

"A trusted source," Robiah replied, his tone once more calm and restrained as he faced Oneakka. "But I'd heard a rumour of a sole supplier of the most advanced Quantum for awhile."

"You're going to tell us all the names you have, all your sources, and everything you have on Quantum," Oneakka ordered as he approached Robiah, coming to a stop only a few inches from the man.

Robiah looked up into Oneakka's face with clear caution at the heavy intimidation, but that spark of defiant confidence was still there. The part that Halling had deemed disrespectful of Elite. It would be difficult to not respect Oneakka's physical intimidation skills, but then Robiah had been fielding Oneakka's constant involvement in hunting Creass for some time now. He was perhaps the most experienced, other than Halling, at facing Oneakka in such a mood.

"I will give you all the information I can, but I have to protect my sources," Robiah replied carefully, and rather bravely in Halling's opinion.

"This is a matter of Alliance security," Oneakka replied, glowering down at the other man. "There is nothing that is not under our jurisdiction."

"I understand that, but you saw what your presence on Dreamstation did to Creass and his organisation. You were barely there an hour from what I heard, but that visit changed everything. My sources will know about that and fear it happening to them. I have had to build a lot of trust up with these people over time and what happened to Dreamstation didn't help matters."

Oneakka leant in further, his large bare arms, crossed over his chest, grazed against Robiah. "You'd rather look after scum than help stop this?" He asked incredulously and angrily.

Robiah licked his lips. He was looking nervous now, though he struggled to hide it still. "No, but it is by working with these contacts over time that I serve the Alliance. For the greater good I have to make agreements of sorts, and one of them is not to drag them into interrogations by the Elite. I need, we _all_ need, these people to stay where they are and still provide us with intelligence."

Halling moved forward to join in the discussion at this point, foreseeing that Oneakka was never going to agree with the man. His single-minded determination just didn't make way for something as subtle as intelligence organisations and looking after informants. Oneakka would prefer to just find the informant, intimidate, threaten, or beat the information out that he wanted. Subtle and gentle were not two of Oneakka's attributes. The tons of smouldering rose grain had been testament to that fact.

"We appreciate that fact, Robiah, but in this we have supreme jurisdiction," Halling said calmly, but with weight. "You can work as intermediary with some informants if you wish, but we will know everything you do."

Robiah glanced at him, appearing somewhat relieved to be able to look away from Oneakka. "And you will have it, but I will need some time. Time to speak to the right contacts, and, as I said, I already have a source working on where we can find this Khor."

"You have one day," Oneakka stated simply.

000000  
TBC


	6. Riot

**Chapter 6 – Riot**

Nolfi was a lot younger than John had expected. He was pretty average in every way – he was just under six foot tall, had medium brown hair and light brown eyes, and an olive skin tone. His hair was short, lifted at the front in a style that would have been popular back at the end of the 90s back on Earth, and he was dressed in the closest thing to a suit John had seen in this galaxy so far. The jacket was buttoned up in a diagonal line across his front, and the pants were the same dark colour, falling down to very shiny shoes. He wouldn't have looked out of place in any New York office, but there was something behind the guy's eyes that was different. John wasn't sure what it was, but it felt heavy and too intelligent when he looked at you.

Edyis was clearly his man, sitting beside the High Councillor in a way that implied he's master had now arrived.

Nolfi had disrupted things in the auditorium from the minute he had walked in, though he hadn't actually said anything other than when he was introduced to everyone. He had made a short, O'Neill style, speech at the start, explaining that the High Council were concerned over the events of the day before, and that they meant no harm to Atlantis. He had then sat down and said nothing else all morning.

His presence had been enough though. Those who before had been the occasional voice of dissent, asking questions that seemed unnecessary, were now objecting loudly to almost everything.

Nolfi had just sat and listened, appearing to be the calm centred leader, listening to all voices without appearing to agree or disagree with anyone. Yet, there was something predatory about that silence. He was watching everything and just by being here, things had changed, and he knew it.

It pissed the hell out of John.

Yesterday evening it had been clear that, though bickering, the majority of the Alliance members were listening to each other, but today things had changed. Verbal sparring had started almost immediately. It hadn't helped that the Genii had sent in a lawyer to sit with Hulte, who had talked in the ambassador's ear constantly, which at least seemed to be annoying Hulte. The other delegates felt that the Genii were stepping too carefully and suddenly some old treaty had been discussed. Apparently years ago the Genii had broken a few treaties and now that fact was coming back to life. John wasn't entirely sure why, but he suspected Nolfi had organised the history lesson somehow.

John glanced over at Nolfi suspiciously, to find the man already looking at him, before looking away back to the Genii, who were again under attack by their own fellow ambassadors.

"Have you had the genetic results back from the assassin yet?" Someone asked, which was a stupid question because that had been the first thing to be asked all of three hours ago.

Beside John, Woolsey sighed. He was losing his rag too.

The lawyer whispered and Hulte blinked slowly as if he was an owl half asleep as he controlled his annoyance. "As explained earlier, we have not yet had the results confirmed."

"But you have some preliminary results?" A balding man in the back row asked.

The lawyer whispered again, his hand in front of his mouth this time. Hulte sighed. "The initial results are being collated, but obviously it would be foolish to announce them until the final checks are complete. We should have the answer by the next update through the Portal."

"How convenient," the balding man replied. "Just like Genii." And then he glanced down towards Nolfi at the front and away again. John narrowed his eyes.

Across the floor to the right, John saw dark eyes turn to him, and he met the eyes of one of the Military Councillors, Tyre of Sateda. The man held John's gaze and then glanced pointedly over at Nolfi and back.

Surprised at the moment, John struggled to work out how to respond, but Tyre looked away before he could come up with anything.

"If the Genii cannot simply test for their own DNA, then are they capable of being here for these talks?" Baldy joked and a few others laughed, but not a lot of them.

"I suggest that we return these talks to the actual reason we are all present," the dark green-haired woman stated loudly from the seat beside Tyre. "The final points of this treaty that will bring some much needed stability."

The Military Council's ambassador had appeared pro-Atlantis over the last couple of days, but that had been nothing to the actual Councillors here now. They were both clearly eager to get the treaty signed, which both pleased and annoyed John, because couldn't they had just signed this damn treaty on behalf of all the others? Why did there have to be so much talk?

"Stability for Atlantis, but hardly all that necessary for our own vast space," someone replied.

The green-haired woman looked round, directly at the person who had spoken. "I assure you, as someone who fights on the frontline, stability _is_ required. If Atlantis has offered support and friendship, even the possibility of joining us in attacking the Wraith, the Military Council has no concerns in signing this agreement."

"That may be straight forward enough for warriors," a woman replied from her seat close behind Nolfi, "but for the rest of us, there are vital issues held in the agreement."

"Such as?" Tyre asked directly. "Actual clear issues that we can all decide on now."

A slight hush fell over the group, many eyes subtly shifting in Nolfi' direction.

"Such as Atlantis' stipulation that all future protected worlds be allowed to decide whether they wish to be included in the Alliance," Edyis replied.

Tyre glanced in John's direction, whilst beside him green-haired woman answered. "I assume this is in regard to Atlantis' displaced visitors?" She asked, looking out at the sea of faces of the refugees around the side of the room behind John's table. The crowd were quieter today, but John guessed that likely had something to do with Sumner's apparent quite forceful discussion with their leaders last night. John suspected the troublemakers had been shut away in their rooms today.

Woolsey leant forward beside John. "I am sure you can understand that not everyone in these new worlds you are invading-"

"Liberating," green-haired woman corrected. "Or is it that they were happy under the constant threat of the Wraith?"

"Liberating," Woolsey corrected carefully. "I am sure you can appreciated that not everyone wishes to be governed by your rules, despite the new protection you provide them. Is freedom from the Wraith only to be lost to intimidation of another sort?"

That caused some disagreement from the Alliance side.

"That is how they see it," Faxon said loudly over the voices. He had more patience than Woolsey, but he seemed tired this morning. "These people have fled their homes, lost many of their families in the rush to escape _you_,"he emphasised. "Not the Wraith, they ran from the Alliance. They fear you almost as much as the Wraith."

More objections were raised, but this time there was some loud agreement from the refugees in response. However, John kept his attention on the green-haired woman as she turned to Tyre and their ambassador, the three of them talking quietly.

"So, they are to have our protection, to have the Military bravely sacrifice lives without any payment?" Someone asked, louder than the rest. "We all in the Alliance bring something to the table for us all, for the greater good."

"And who decides for these new people what that 'something' is?" Faxon asked, all calm and logical beside John. "I'm sure that when you all formed the Alliance, you offered what you could give, that it was not demanded of you."

More objections, but it seemed there were many now who were hushing those making so much fuss.

"You are aware," one woman asked, "that we do not actually demand that they sacrifice their children as they believe?"

"Yet you do take a massive portion of their crops, take some of their people as slaves, and impose a military presence in their towns," Faxon replied.

"Enforcement is something often badly needed on some worlds," the woman replied. "And we only bring justice. Once in the Alliance, these new worlds are given a voice among us all. Here," she gestured to those sat around her, "their representatives sit among us, their voices heard and their votes in both the High and Military Councils counted. They are not trodden on masses. They are welcomed into the Alliance."

Woolsey held up one hand. "We are not disputing the good the Alliance has done. The Alliance has saved millions of lives from the Wraith, but our point is that many of these new worlds you are...liberating...are frightened, and unwilling to be a part of your great Alliance."

"So we are to leave sections of the newly acquired territories out of our cover?" the same woman asked. "Leave them exposed as well as our Military's backs as we advance, pushing the Wraith further away?"

"Perhaps," the green-haired councillor interrupted, her hushed conversation with her colleagues over, "there is something that can be done, in consideration that any newly included worlds have their own unique gifts to give the Alliance, as did the original systems and worlds before our territory expansion."

That had thrown everyone.

"You cannot change Alliance law," Edyis objected.

Hulte's, formally only whispering, lawyer sat up straight and spoke for the first time. "It is not under the edict of the Military Council to make law."

John glanced at Nolfi, to see him frowning ever so slightly.

"We are the ones pushing our reach out to cover these new systems," green-haired woman responded.

John leaned his shoulder against Faxon's to his left and whispered very quietly "What's green-haired lady called again?"

"Fe-Rrara," Faxon replied equally as quietly, smiling faintly. There were noticeable darker circles under his eyes than yesterday.

"Right," John replied as if he had just needed the reminder and had not simply completely forgotten the name the moment he had been told when the woman had first been introduced to him.

"Are you arguing that the Military should be in sole control of law?" Edyis was saying sternly across the room.

"We are suggesting that in order to tend to those under our new care, being as equally entitled to the benefits of our civilisation as those who sit in the safe centre of our territory, that certain allowances might need to be made," Fe-Rrara replied.

"Such as the end of the slavery trade," one person in the middle of the Alliance ranks stated loudly and many began nodding with them.

"The attack on Major Sheppard, and the assassin's own betrayal of his leader, Narro, show us how damaging this trade is to politics as well as to people's lives. If we in the Alliance are to be equals, then that should extend to all," the same man continued to shouts of agreement around him.

"The abolition of the slave trade has been discussed very recently in the High Council chamber," Edyis stated over the voices, "and is a matter for internal debate for this change to go through. It is not something to be resolved here in these talks with outsiders."

"It is perhaps that trade alone that has put so much fear into the outlying worlds that causes them to run from us onto worlds that are at higher risk of culling," Fe-Rrara stated. "Therefore it is exceptionally relevant."

At which point, Nolfi stood up, securing the buttons of his slanted smart jacket as he did. All eyes turned to him.

"If I may suggest," he said calmly, "that if these points are so vital to this agreement, then perhaps it would be best to delay the signing of this treaty until such points are dealt with by the High Council."

John felt Woolsey and Faxon both tense up next to him.

"High Councillor," Fe-Rrara replied, "I in turn suggest that in leaving these talks now, we will only delay gaining faith of those who are so frightened of us to be running into Wraith hands."

"But they are not," Nolfi replied, "they are running into the hands of Atlantis, who appear to be ably supporting them all." He smiled in a slimy way over at John's table briefly. "And it is not appreciated that the Military Council are using these non-aggression talks with people from another galaxy, to change policy in the entire Alliance."

"We are only pointing out that these changes of policy, which have already been voiced by many across the Alliance, affects far out from our Alliance," Fe-Rrara replied. "And that by ignoring this, the High Council is ignoring the very relevant and vital voice of the Military."

Nolfi looked away from her to the other Alliance members. "I suggest that this would be the best time for all of us to break for food and discussion among ourselves, to return with calmer minds and voices afterwards." There were various nods, but a new tension was overlaying the room, eyes shifting between Nolfi and the Military Councillors.

"This isn't going well," John said under his voice for Woolsey and Faxon's ears only.

Woolsey stood up and nodded to Nolfi. "I agree. There will be food supplied, as always, in our secondary Mess. Please remember not to move outside the designated areas without escort."

"Of course, Ambassador Woolsey," Nolfi replied slimily. "We will be the best of guests."

There was some awkward laughter behind him, but everyone looked eager to get up from their seats.

"If everyone could be back here by two o'clock," Woolsey announced as everyone began to stand, while he instead sat back down with a soft sigh. "This isn't going well," he confirmed.

John nodded his agreement to his own point as he looked across the auditorium to where he had last seen Teyla on duty. She was still there, hands folded calmly in front of her, the dark hilts of her swords crossed behind her head. She looked as calm and unemotional as she always did when in Elite 'mode', but he saw enough hints to see her own concern at this new development.

Her gaze shifted from the passing Alliance members to John, and he smiled as he nodded. She nodded back, as did the other Elite Kari next to her, before they both looked away again.

"The Elite aren't happy about it either," he reported quietly in the noise of the refugees leaving the room by another exit from the Alliance, until within seconds, it was only John, Woolsey, Faxon and a few guards left in the massive auditorium.

Faxon sighed as he got up. "We should report this all to Colonel Carter before we eat," he suggested.

John smiled as he stood. "Always eager to report to Colonel Carter, Ambassador Faxon," he teased. The guy clearly had a crush on the beautiful commander of the city.

Faxon paused in picking up his tablet, folder and pen. "She'll need our update," he replied, but John saw the faint lopsided smile as he picked up his briefcase and shoved his things inside.

"Sure, better get there quick," John uttered as he picked up his own notepad. He'd had it more for show, though had thought it might be useful to note down any observations during the talks. Today, the front sheet was decorated in various doodles around only two words – 'High Council' and 'Nolfi'. It pretty much summed up the obstacles to this treaty. Problem was it didn't look like they could do anything about either one.

They made it up to Colonel Carter's office quickly enough, Faxon taking the lead, and their report to her was short and to the point.

To her credit she didn't seem all that surprised or upset about it as she sat back in her chair with a sigh, looking thoughtful.

"On the positive side," Faxon said, "for the first time, an actual possible way forward has been suggested by the Military Council. If the Alliance agreed to lessen their demands on the new worlds, it might go so far as to quell a lot of ill feeling out there."

John pulled a face as he slouched back in his chair.

"You're not convinced, Major?" Colonel Carter asked.

Caught off guard, John sat up straighter in his seat again. "I'm not convinced that the High Council would ever agree to it, for no other reason than that the Military Council made the suggestion."

"The Military Council, as the Elite have suggested before now," Woolsey put in, "seem more than in favour for the treaty to be signed."

"They've got more important things to focus on," John added.

"And that's part of the problem, Major," Woolsey said back, with that teacher tone that he always used when he thought John wasn't understanding the 'bigger political picture'. "By saying that such considerations are easily dismissed, the Military are swatting aside the High Council's view."

"You think the High Council is intent to keep the slavery laws?" Carter asked.

"Even if they are actually planning to go ahead and ban slavery, they still won't like that the Military Council might be seen as having pushed them into it," Woolsey replied passionately. "We're caught between two sides that will disagree with each other whatever the argument," he said with exhaustion as he sat back heavily.

"The Military Council have it right in my opinion," John put in.

"Which is the kind of thinking you mustn't show in the negotiations," Woolsey berated.

"They all know I'm military, why shouldn't I agree with the very logical and reasonable suggestion put forward by the Military Council?" John argued.

"It is just that kind of thinking that's the problem," Woolsey replied. "You're instantly against the non-military side of things."

"I'm not," John protested. "They just happen to be right. Get rid of slavery and change the laws for newly acquired worlds."

Woolsey sighed like John was behaving like a stupid kid.

Carter sat forward in her chair hands out. "Let's try and focus on _their _disagreements, okay."

John had to admit that was a fair point. There'd been enough arguing for one day, and it was only quarter past one.

"I'm not convinced we'll get them to agree to anything today," Woolsey reported pessimistically, but probably accurately.

"Not unless the majority of the Alliance ambassadors start teaming up and pushing through this treaty, I agree," Faxon added. "I think all we can do for-"

"Colonel Carter," Chuck's voice echoed into the office from behind them and John looked round quickly, already identifying Chuck's tone as worrying. "Colonel Sumner needs urgent back up out on the east pier."

Carter rose from her seat and led the hurried way out of her office, across the balcony walk and into the Control Room. Lorne and Ford stood close by, Rodney in front of a computer with Chuck next to him.

"Is he on the radio?" Carter asked as she arrived.

"On speaker," Chuck confirmed.

"What's happening, Colonel?" Carter asked into the air.

"We've got refugees kicking off down here," Sumner's loud voice reported abruptly, over the chorus of shouting in the background. "I've got Marine teams on their way."

Carter gestured to John. "Take your team down to help."

John nodded as he headed away quickly, Lorne already handing him a P90 from somewhere.

"You don't need me, right?" Rodney called from behind as John started down the stairs.

"No, Rodney," John shouted back over the sound of his, Lorne's and Ford's boots on the stairs.

A transporter down and across the city, brought them to the first building along the east pier that was the official line the visitors shouldn't cross without escort. As soon as they were out of the transporter, John could already hear the shouting of angry voices. The Marines had arrived ahead of them, the last of their teams disappearing around the corner ahead. As John led his team after them, turning the corner behind the last of the Marine boots, he saw the flicker of firelight against a wall up ahead.

"Stand down," Sumner's voice echoed, but it came from above, and at another turn, John realised the trouble was up a level.

"Watch it, Sir," someone warned as pieces of burning paper drifted down across the floor ahead of them.

"What's going on?" John demanded as he joined the Marine rush up the stairs.

"Something about a riot, Sir," one reported, but since he was new to the scene, John didn't take his word for it, and the shouting over the radio in his ear was no help so far.

He reached the top of the stairs, which opened up into a junction on the new level, where two corridors diverged off in either direction, and in the middle of the intersection there were about six refugees slugging it out. Sumner and his team were in the thick of it, Wraith stunners in hand. There were already several people on the floor, two of Carson's medics looking over them, whilst down the left corridor a couple of Marines were using fire extinguishers to put out a burning pile of broken furniture and paper. Further down both corridors, people were packed into the narrow space, many looking angry, some already nursing bruises, but the majority behind them just looked worried. John got the impression the incident had been sparked by a minority, likely those already stunned on the floor.

"Stand down," Sumner ordered as he took a right hook against his elbow and then decked his attacking troublemaker with the back of his stunner.

More shouts of warning from the Marines filing past John, had the watching audience already backing up. John held his ground with his team at the entrance to the stairwell, overseeing Sumner and forming a solid defensive line. The arrival of the P90s and the Marines was clearly turning the tide.

However, there was always one guy who responded the wrong way to confrontation.

"Alliance lovers," one such man shouted loudly over the hiss of the fire extinguishers. John tracked his P90 to the left to see a shiny-headed man jump past the extinguishers and rush down the corridor towards Sumner, a piece of broken chair leg in his hand.

Several stunners fired instantly and the guy dropped, but his forward momentum had him skidding forward on his front until he stopped, unconscious near Sumner's boots.

Another burst of stunner fire to the right meant someone else was making a play for it, but more stunners fired, one burst of the energy crackling unused across the wall near John. John tracked to the right now, to see that Trouble Maker number two was already stunned and on the floor.

Sumner turned, stunner held high for all to see. "I want order here now!" He commanded loudly and instantly had an effect. Silence, broken only by the last occasional bursts from an extinguisher, was tense, but the worst was over.

"Everyone back to their assigned quarters. Now!" Sumner ordered. "I want your elected leaders out here."

"They're sitting with Alliance thieves," a female voice shouted down the length of the left hand corridor. "Selling our souls for weak empty promises."

Sumner turned in her direction. "I don't care what's happening with your souls, right now you are under my roof and you're close to being thrown out on your backsides."

John saw several people group around the young woman and she was quickly hustled out of view, complaining all the way.

"Colonel Sumner," a voice called into John's ear over the radio. "We've got two of their leaders down here requesting to come up."

John looked back down to the small space he could see of the floor below the staircase. He couldn't make out much, but he could see many upturned eyes.

"They under control?" Sumner asked into his ear piece.

"Yes, Sir," the voice returned.

"Let 'em up," Sumner agreed.

John gestured for space as two thickly dressed figures hurried up the staircase, escorted by two Marines.

John watched the two leaders, one male and one female, as they stepped into the corridor intersection, their eyes widening with anger.

"What is happening here?" the older man demanded of the left hand corridor, which presumably held his people.

"You cannot expect us to just wait, Nogseo," one man replied from where he stood in an open doorway down the corridor.

Nogseo moved forward, carefully stepping around stunned bodies, who were being tended to by Carson and his people. "Colonel Sumner, I personally apologise for my people's behaviour. You must understand this is a difficult time-"

"I'm not interested in listening to excuses," Sumner replied tactfully, his breathing still fast. "Any more trouble like this and everyone is out of here. Understood?"

John wasn't sure if Sumner could make that kind of decision, but there was no doubting the anger and conviction of the man.

"Of course, Colonel," Nogseo replied immediately.

"We are all grateful for having this space to live until the situation with the Alliance is resolved," the female leader replied, looking down to the right where her own people were disappearing into their rooms. Marines were walking down the corridor, encouraging those still standing around looking defiant to move on before they started something new.

"Good, because we've got enough trouble in this city dealing with the Alliance," Sumner replied, not all that politically correctly, but John wasn't about to correct his superior. "We don't need you guys kicking off too."

"We understand that," the woman replied, and beside her Nogseo nodded, moving away to the left to look down at the shiny-headed unconscious figure lying spread-eagled on the floor amidst the black shrivelled pieces of burnt paper and wood. John thought the look Nogseo gave the man was far too close to the disappointed looks his dad used to give him.

"Colonel Sumner," a voice called down the corridor from the right and John saw a Marine waving a beckoning hand. "We've got something in here."

As John moved forward, the female leader rushed ahead frowning. "What is it?"

"Stay back, Ma'am," Sumner ordered with an outstretched hand blocking her path as he pushed ahead, marching down the corridor towards the two Marines now stood at a far door.

"Just let us check it's all clear," John said to the female leader as he passed her, following the Colonel down the littered corridor.

Sumner noticed him with a brief look over his shoulder. "Finished playing politician for the day, Major?"

"Just taking a break, out for stroll," John replied glibly and regretted it immediately, but fortunately they had reached the two Marines. They were stood outside an open doorway and one led the way inside.

Sumner entered the room and John followed, only to come up short at what he saw inside.

Due to the large number of refugees staying in the city, most of the rooms they had been allocated were shared. This room was no different. There were bedrolls, a few bags of people's belongings, bottled water supplied by the Mess, and a pile of towels. Only in this room, the bedrolls had been arranged in a circle at the centre of the room, and each currently held an unconscious man. There was a large pile of towels to one side, clearly heavily soiled and the smell ran right up John's nose. A young woman was crouched nervously by the already full laundry bin, her eyes wide and her hands wrapped in rags, presumably as makeshift gloves while she handled the towels.

"Stay there," Sumner ordered her, more gently than John had expected, as he moved towards the circle of unconscious refugees.

There were six of them, teenagers mostly and a couple older, lying in their vague circle, towels under them, and their arms stretched out to their sides as if they were sunbathing.

Sumner moved around the closest part of the circle and nudged one kid's leg with his boot. "Get up," he ordered, but it seemed pretty obvious to John that these people wouldn't respond anytime soon, but they were alive. John had seen enough dead bodies to know what death looked like.

He turned to stick his head back out into the corridor. "Beckett," John called down towards where the doc was finishing up with the rioters. The doc responded immediately, picking up his medkit in one hand and hurried down the corridor.

"What is it?" Carson called, his accent sounding heavier with his hurried breaths.

"No need to hurry, Doc," John assured him as he re-entered the room.

Sumner had moved round to the far side of the bodies and was crouched down by one. "Alive," he confirmed with fingers against the man's throat.

"She was looking after them," one of the Marines commented obviously.

"Are they sick?" John voiced the next conclusion.

"What is this mess in here," Carson muttered as soon as he got inside the room. "I'll need more help in here." A Marine outside moved away to get more of Caron's team.

Carson crouched down by the closest body and felt for a pulse the same as Sumner had. "Alive for sure. Good circulation," he added, before pulling a pen light out of his pocket and lifting one of the guy's eyelids. "And high as a kite, I'd say."

"Maybe on this?" John suggested, having noticed a pile of empty vials to one side of the room.

"That what they're on?" Sumner demanded of the cowering woman.

"There's no need to shout at the poor dear," Carson said almost angrily up at the Colonel as behind several of his medics arrived and moved out around the bodies.

John reached out and pulled out a latex glove from the side of Carson's open medkit and carefully picked up one of the vials which looked like it still had something in it. He held it up to the light, tilting the vial and a silvery liquid pooled to one side. "Looks like we've got some left."

"I'll need it for testing," Carson replied, "I'll need to know what they're on if I'm to treat them properly."

John wasn't convinced they needed treating. The refugees had had excellent healthcare since staying in the city, so there was no need for these guys to have shut themselves away if they were ill. It was far more likely they were tripping on something recreational.

"They'll come down off their high soon enough," Sumner growled as he glared down at the frightened woman again. "Where'd they get it?" He demanded loudly.

The female leader from down the corridor appeared in the doorway, her eyes widening in shock and then anger as she too glared down at the woman.

Sumner turned on the leader. "First a riot and then this. You were told to have no medicines, no plants, no drugs."

The woman stared up at him. "We had nothing but the clothes on our backs when we got here. Scraps of our world. Trust me, no one held back to save something like this."

"Where did it come from then?" Sumner demanded again.

"Everyone was searched by your people, no one had anything with them," she insisted again.

The sample vial sealed in a baggy Carson had given him, John set the vial carefully in a Marine's hands. "Someone must have smuggled it in," John suggested.

The woman looked round at him and her gaze fell to the vial as it was passed over, and John saw her expression change. "You know what this is?" He asked, "What they've taken."

Her face hardened. "It's an addictive Alliance drug. They must have smuggled it into the city."

"I thought your people hated the Alliance," Sumner pointed out.

She frowned from him to the young woman still attempting to be forgotten. "It's a drug that's being spread throughout many worlds by the Alliance."

"So you don't want their protection, but they're drugs are okay?" Sumner asked sarcastically.

"These people acted of their own choice," she replied gesturing to the floor, "you cannot blame them, stuck here with no home, no prospects for ever living free again. Most have lost their entire families."

"You were told, no disturbances, no weapons and no substances," Sumner insisted stepping towards her. "We gave you a place to stay and you've broken two of our rules."

"The Alliance must have brought this drug into the city," she replied angrily. "Is it coincidence that it suddenly appears here whilst they are here?!"

"Your people bought it off them even if they did," Sumner replied and stormed past her out of the room.

The woman turned on the spot, watching him leave. "What does this mean for my people?" She called. "Colonel Sumner?"

She disappeared out of the door, following Sumner, no doubt begging that her people could stay.

Beyond the open door and the one Marine on guard outside, John saw various cautious faces watching from the corridor, kids mixed in with the adults. He couldn't image Colonel Carter would throw them all out because of a small group breaking the rules.

Would she?

0000000

The hallways of Lalwani were quiet and subdued, the late night level of lighting casting soft glowing pools of light through the tunnel corridors. Maybe it was because of the reduced lighting levels, but the base always felt especially colder at night.

Due to her heritage, cold didn't affect Seeal physically, but she still hated it. It felt like a living thing against the bare skin of her face, seeping its way down the collar of her top, and trying to penetrate in through her clothing. It hovered threateningly through the base, crawling and looming through the tunnels, chilling the air just shy of frost. Which was the only positive fact about the cold walls, empty spaces and endless tunnels of Lalwani, for she hated ice and snow even more than cold air.

Bad memories lived in the snow.

She would not regret leaving Lalwani' cold behind when she left Creass' organisation.

She had to be careful how she made her exit though. It would do her no good just running away tonight. She needed to be smart about it. She would need to talk with her contacts, buy necessary supplies, and gather together her many stashes of physical currency she had saved over the years. Working on Dreamstation she had had nothing to pay Creass for her living, and she had not spent a single ounce of her currency on any of the gambling tables or on any of the many handsome male prostitutes in the lower levels of the station. She had saved almost every single ounce of her pay, keeping it in many small locations off Dreamstation, all easy enough for her to retrieve. Well, easy on most normal days, not so much when you had an Elite warrior personally hunting you.

The sense of being hunted slithered up her spine once more. The looming cold behind her felt inhabited by the echo of the Elite warrior's angry snarl. It tickled at the back of her neck like she was prey and the hunter had her scent. She was not used to feeling this way, and it itched at her constantly.

And it angered her too. That justified Elite fanaticism – so maddening, so massive and aggressive. Haunting her still.

It frightened her too though, and that was what bothered her the most. She was not used to being afraid. She controlled her fear, not let it run around loose terrifying her down empty corridors and in the chilled draught across the back of her neck.

Intellectually she had known Elite were excellent warriors, it was obvious, because if you were going to throw yourself into a pit of Wraith, you had better be able to handle yourself. However, the truth was that the warrior had been shockingly skilled, more so than any fighter she had ever met before. He had been the very worst combination in an opponent – he had been loaded with strong muscle, but somehow still super fast, and he had predicted so much of what she had thrown at him. It told her that Elite clearly spent as much time fighting people as they did Wraith.

What would she do if she met him again? She had gotten away due to luck, pure and simple. Her only chance, as far as she could imagine, was to shoot the Elite before he got a hand on her. Except if he got a stunner shot in first...

Realising she had slipped into paranoid fearful wanderings again, Seeal growled at herself angrily. It was just chilled air on the back of her neck, not the predatory stare of the Elite warrior. She didn't need to look over her shoulder to check. She knew it was all in her mind.

She needed to get away from Creass as quickly as possible, but to do so smartly.

Because she would bet all of her currency that that Elite warrior was hunting her out there. He clearly held grudges.

And she had rubbed mud into his eyes, kicked him in the groin, and gotten out of his grasp.

She suspected most men wouldn't forget that.

And an Elite warrior...

She took a deep breath. She needed to remain calm and in control, and to focus on her task.

Fortunately the door to the security room came into view and she focused all her attention onto it.

Never had anything gotten to her like that Elite.

Only once before had she felt so helpless and that would _never_ happen again.

She triggered open the bulletproof glass door to the central security hub of Lalwani.

One of her team was sat at the main console, his boots up on the end of the desk, which he prompting removed as she entered. In front of him, a bank of six screens glowed, making him appear pale in their light as he sat up vaguely straight. Creass' security respected her, but they weren't the type of men who ever sat up straight and paid attention to anything fully unless they were well paid and/or beating it. She used them, had forged them as best she could, but had found that respect had gotten the best out of them over the years. She had, of course, lost half the team on leaving Dreamstation, but the remainder were good enough.

However, tonight she didn't want any of them around her.

"Wasn't expecting you to stay on planet while Khor's here," the man muttered as he leant back into his seat.

"I find it best to keep an eye on visitors that make my skin crawl," she replied sternly and indifferently, as she always did. It was like a cool smooth mask she always wore, and feeling it settling back into its proper place again, felt good. It felt familiar and controlled.

She leant against the end of the desk to look at the screens with him.

"Khor's in his room. No movement," he reported with some boredom and a slight laziness that she expected.

She inhaled louder than necessary and stood up straight again, crossing her arms. "You smell of rose beer."

He looked up sharply, the only light over him from the screens. "Only half a cup."

"You know the rules," she told him. "No drink on duty."

He pulled a protesting face. "I can function. They said the extra barrel was for us, said you said we could have it."

"Off duty, yes," she replied as if bored already with the discussion. "Go," she ordered him with a flick of her head.

He sighed and stood up.

"Get Hammon," she ordered as she took his place in the seat in front of the screens.

"Hammon?" He asked confused.

Hammon was the only security member who never drank.

"Tell him to walk the perimeter out and in before he gets here. Tell him I want Khor watched closely. I'll keep an eye from here until he's finished," she ordered as she turned to the screens, their pale blue glow bright in her eyes against the shadows in the room.

"Whatever."

She watched over the edge of one screen as he left, shutting the bulletproof door back into place.

Once she was alone she began tapping on the central screen, scrolling through the camera screens until she reached Creass' office. She pulled it up onto the largest screen. Creass had turned in for the night as well, having left his desk spread with pads and empty cups. She opened a menu of the day's previous recordings in the office, and started up the one covering Creass' shared meal with Khor as they had talked business. She set her elbow on the desk and supported her chin in her hand as she watched the film twice through.

Khor hadn't eaten much and had left the cup of rose beer untouched, which was always wise in company of men like Creass. Behind him, Khor's assistant had stood still and uninvolved. The silver metal box sat on the floor by the table – Khor's samples. Creass didn't use Quantum himself, but he would have plenty of volunteers to help him sample it all.

She expanded the recorded view of Khor at the table and watched him carefully. He was very controlled. Every movement was precise and efficient. He was big, said little, but seemed honesty interested in whatever the deal was he and Creass were striking.

Robiah had asked why Khor would use Creass for distributing his latest Quantum, and it was a good question. Creass was falling down the pile of scum leaders in supply and smuggling. His well run prostitution stations, the biggest being Dreamstation, still brought him in a lot of currency, and through them he had some interesting information and blackmailing material. But, Creass wasn't happy with that, he had been pushed off his top spot in the pile and he wanted it back. So perhaps Khor was using him because of that drive, that determination. Creass had been badly affected by losing Dreamstation. As loud, determined and aggressive as he still appeared, she could see differently. He was scared, angry and desperate. Khor might just see that too.

On a side screen, she saw Hammon beginning his round. He would check the others weren't on rose beer, after that extra barrel she had known would be shared out far too early. It would give her the time she needed.

She looked back to the replay of Khor. She watched him rise from his seat, retrieve the metal case and set the vials on the table. Every move was precise, focused as if every little thing the man did had to be properly judged.

Everything about him bothered her. He _did _make her skin crawl.

But, she wasn't going to get any more out of watching him.

Checking out of the glass door, she retrieved two small cartridges from her belt, opened them, snapped them together and plugged the result into an access port to the computer.

It was so much easier to hack a system when you had helped set it up.

She tapped in commands, sending her secret fingers out into the depths of the computer system, which included access to Creass' hidden files, and not just the ones he had set up knowing she and others could find. There was a whole wealth of information in the back hidden folders. She had pulled out some very interesting information from them over the years. It was thinner on new information than back on Dreamstation, but still useful.

She sought out all he had on Khor. There was not much, mostly comments from others he had recorded. She read each and considered it was all rumour and little evidence, but there was one particular name that was again linked to Khor. Kolya.

She sent out a search for his name and surprisingly little came back, which meant that Creass used a pseudonym for Kolya. She didn't bother trying to guess, instead she sent her roving programme into the current folder, pulling out significant words and set it to compare to the rest of the database. A massive folder came back with similar entries.

He had used 'Commander' as the pseudonym. She could have guessed that. Shaking her head, she copied what she deemed useful, and skimmed the rest. Some common names and places began to seep out, but most of these entries were from before they had left Dreamstation. What was clear from the entries was that Kolya had no set base of operations that anyone knew about, or at least had told Creass about. Kolya had used Dreamstation as a meeting point frequently, but he had come and gone for each meeting. She hadn't had much trouble from him on the station. He was a man who knew to behave in such places because he never wanted to draw attention. She had watched him carefully though. She knew what kind of man he was, and such arrogance was difficult to set with a nomadic vengeful man. He must have somewhere to plot, to think. Everyone had somewhere to go, even for short stays. It occurred to her that perhaps Dreamstation had been his.

She saw movement on a lower screen. She had a visitor.

She triggered more searches and set them running in the background whilst she pulled forward the security footage again, including the replays of Khor. It would not hurt for them to be seen.

The man's shadow arrived ahead of him, cast through the low light outside the security room's door. Stupid. He thought he was sneaking up on her. He didn't even know where the cameras were, even after living here long enough.

"I did not think you would be up, let along on the planet," Uppal's voice arrived low and tight through the few small air holes through the top of the bulletproof glass before he triggered it open.

He wore one of his usual tailored long coats, the sleeves and waist pulled in tightly around his slim figure.

"And I'm surprised you're conscious following a new delivery of rose beer," she replied, keeping her eyes mainly on the screens so to appear disinterested in him, though she watched him carefully in her peripheral vision. Men always forgot that women could watch what was in their periphery.

"Your mood is as lovely as ever," Uppal responded to her verbal attack as he moved further into the room, linking up his arms behind his back to appear casual. He would celebrate the day she left, though perhaps not with such as strong a buzz as he would hope from the rose beer.

He was severely addicted to the beer, though not many knew, because with the true depth of proper addiction, he drank small amounts constantly through the day. It affected his reaction times, but not so much that it affected his life. To those who didn't know, he wouldn't appear an addict. Yet, the constant background buzz of the rose beer was a necessary part of his life. He had overseen Creass' production line for too many years, but he had gotten very good at reading the industry. Rose grain and rose beer were not illegal in the Alliance or beyond, being a common enough drink on most worlds, but there was a high level of profit in it, and Creass had gotten into it a long time ago. Uppal had come into his own when he had recommended to Creass that altering the grain in various small ways could improve profit. Various different flavoured rose grains, with differing strengths, and even increased addictive levels, had been created here in Lalwani' fields. In his own area of expertise, Uppal was skilled. He had been established in running this base, and Creass' appearance here full time had interrupted his happy lifestyle.

"Khor bothers you so much?" Uppal asked having caught sight of the screens in front of her.

"I don't trust his intentions," she replied as a nice safe random response for Uppal to dissect.

"His intentions?" Uppal replied with interest as he moved back round behind the screens, forcing her to be aware of him over the screens. "Are you so set to protect Creass' interests?"

She looked up a fraction, just enough to look directly at Uppal over the screens. "I'm his head of security, what else would I be doing?" She rather liked the irony of that question.

"I think you are frustrated without having so much to watch over as you did on Dreamstation."

She looked back to the screens.

"I think you hate it here," he said, setting his hands on the desk behind the screens to try and learn threateningly over them. It didn't work well, especially as the screens were set pretty high up off the desk. She decided to let him think he might be getting to her somewhat, so looked up at him and blinked.

"I think that Elite frightened you to your little girl-toes."

She frowned properly at that comment.

He pulled back, trying to appear pleased with his gained reaction, but she had seen his twitch of nervousness when she had frowned. He didn't like her, wanted her gone, but he feared her too. She was more than happy with all of that. She didn't like him either, and he could keep Creass and Lalwani to himself.

"Maybe when that Elite warrior finds Lalwani, you can meet him for yourself," she suggested with a grim smile.

Uppal turned away, attempting to look bored, but she knew he would fear that happening – to lose his precious rose grain fields. "And I imagine if that day were to come, you'd be the first running away through to the Portal," he replied.

"If you're smart, which I have my doubts about," she added, "you would do the same."

He scoffed at that, shaking his head. "Enjoy your night of paranoid security duty. I am going to rest comfortably. I do hope your dreams of running scared from that Elite don't haunt you too much," he baited, thinking he was good at threatening people. She guessed the rose grain had to have eventually started pickling his brains.

He paused in the open exit to the security room and looked back at her with a greasy smile before he triggered the bulletproof glass door shut between them. "Happy dreams, Seeal," he added as he slipped out of view.

"Enjoy your late night beer," she called to him loudly so it would carry through the glass.

She lowered her gaze to the small area of the screen that showed Uppal walking away down the tunnel outside. He looked stupidly pleased with himself. She tracked him through the base, back to his quarters. As the door opened, she caught a glimpse of a naked female leg touching down to the floor off the end of a bed.

Rolling her eyes, she checked the other screens, including Hammon's progress. He was moving at a steady, predictable pace. Always thorough as well as sober. She still had plenty of time to do all her research undisturbed.

She pulled up the next trace, casting her eye over the side screen that showed her results so far, and then typed in a new search.

If she was going to have a clean break from here, she would need to leave some clean space behind, a path back if she needed it in the future, and Robiah would be that for her. Through him she might be able to gain a future door back into Alliance territory, and having made a deal with him to ensure Ulfur would be returned home, she wouldn't have to carry anymore foolish lingering guilt about her brother.

She would meet Robiah one last time as planned and tell him that she was out of Creass' organisation. She would ensure he would complete on their deal in return for the information she had on Khor and Kolya. Then, she would be free again. Free of the blackmail, free of Ulfur, free of the Elite for good.

And if she got to hurt Khor and a few other pieces of scum by helping the Alliance's Investigators as she did, then all the better.

00000  
TBC


	7. Watch and Wait

**Note:** A quick message for annushka – I can't reply directly to your review, so hope this is okay. Thanks for your review, and thanks for your comments, most valid I think. I think the confusion is on how I posted up the fic, it's not just a John/Teyla story, but I couldn't find Other Character tag on the site, but will try again, and put the info into the description of the fic. Seeal has been in three previous Alliance chapters, two in 'Dark Shadows Rising' and one of 'Interlude', so I don't really think of her as a new character, but I can understand your point. Thank you for your feedback.

And now on to a pov that I've been waiting to write for a long time...

000000

**Chapter 7 – Watch and Wait**

Striding across the public plaza, Oneakka frowned up at the grey, unimpressive Investigation Division building.

It was a squat, box of a building, lined with strips of wide tall windows, which had been a stupid choice, as it meant any child with a basic telescope could observe what was going on inside the building. Not that there was anything interesting to spy on in there; the building was simply stuffed full of investigators all scurrying around, tapping things into pads, handing the pads to other people with pads, and then discussing everything on the pads in meetings with other people with pads.

No one actually seemed to do any real work here. They just talked about it.

And tapped it into their pads.

They certainly hadn't thought about basic defensive strategy when they had built their Investigation Division headquarters. The massive number of windows aside, the wide open public plaza was full of potential observation points – trees, benches, other nearby buildings, all of which could be used as a base from which to spy or attack the Division building.

The inside was no better. The main entrance lobby was a wide open space through which the public were free to wander from queue to queue in the long lines up to the checkpoints to enter the building proper. The checkpoints were simple desks set beside the tall frames of metal and chemical detectors, which was all that security used to scan and observe the public attempting to enter the building. Behind the checkpoints, the wide open space continued towards a low rising wide set of steps that provided access to the main offices and stairwells. All designed to impress, but no one had thought of proper defence.

Typical.

That wasn't his problem though.

Oneakka strode through the open space of the entrance lobby towards the closest checkpoint and its metal and chemical frame detector. He didn't need a passkey, if his facial tattoos and reputation weren't evidence enough, then his armour and weapons were his passkey.

Ahead of him oblivious civilians were milling around, fussing over which queue to join, no doubt trying to find out where some pad-wielding investigator had filed away their family member who had been arrested by Enforcement.

Most of them noticed him quickly enough, but a group of men didn't get out of his way in time, being too busy arguing over something to do with missing chickens, so Oneakka assisted them out of his way with a shove of his elbow and shoulder. The tallest man, who should know better about physical respect of space, stumbled aside and turned to object, but Oneakka had moved past him and had no interest in seeing how the man would react to discovering he had almost obstructed an Elite.

"Oneakka," Halling uttered under his breath from behind.

"What?" Oneakka asked over his shoulder as he neared the front of the long queue. "I don't queue."

Halling lifted his eyebrows in a show of his usual exasperation, but the man still followed and didn't make any soft apologies to the civilians around them. Elite had to maintain a certain appearance, and Oneakka wasn't going to stand in a queue all nice and quiet. That would be a waste of his time and these people should know that.

The two security guards stood at the checkpoint ahead had seen him coming, and Oneakka saw them exchange a worried look. Oneakka had visited this building a hand full of times in the last month, but the guards always varied.

He didn't slow down to explain his presence to them.

The man stood at the front of the queue stepped back politely, allowing Oneakka ahead of him, and so, ignoring the worried looking guards, Oneakka strode straight through the frame of the detector. As expected, the detector went crazy behind him, but he kept on walking. As if you needed a scanner to detect his very obvious weapons!

He ate up the short distance to the wide steps, and moved up their shallow rise quickly. So badly designed, the steps annoyed him. They should be steeper and should narrow towards the top to bottleneck in any attackers.

Behind him and Halling, the sirens and flashing lights of the detectors finally stopped, but at the top of the steps, several wild-eyed looking young security guards appeared, called by the sirens. They clocked him immediately though and began to back away, a couple of them familiar faces now.

No doubt Robiah would be receiving the news that he and Halling were in the building. Good. At least this time, Robiah wouldn't run and hide. They had given him one day to collate his evidence, and his time was up.

"Do you always announce yourself like this?" Halling asked as they ascended the last few steps and turned to the next wide flight of steps. Robiah's office was directly up two floors, which was foolish. He should be further back, deeper in the building, where he could escape more easily and remain closer to the research divisions in the back sections.

"Oneakka?" Halling prompted, presumably thinking he hadn't been heard.

"I don't queue," Oneakka repeated simply, ignoring all the subtext that Halling always laced in all such questions. As if he didn't know how to handle the situation. It wasn't as if he could sneak in unnoticed. His main skill was being seen, and feared. What was the point of Elite tattoos otherwise?

"You do in the Sythus," Halling muttered though, surprising him. "For meals."

Oneakka frowned at him as they exited on the second level of the building. "There's rarely more than one person in front of me."

Halling smiled and shook his head like Oneakka was stupid.

Many thought that.

Oneakka was happy enough for them to think so.

And besides, he liked his brute skill-set.

Which he employed as soon as they entered the main office space of Robiah's section of the Division.

The office space stretched out ahead, mostly open plan on both sides of a central avenue formed by low cabinets, the more senior staff's walled offices set at the far end.

Oneakka strode down the central avenue, heading towards where Robiah's office stood at the far end. Around him, startled people were looking up from their desks, and faces rapidly appeared from around cabinets and bookcases of pads. Some faces turned away, a nervous reaction, while others stared openly, excitedly by the spectacle of Elite warriors in their offices. He would have thought they would have gotten used to his impromptu visits by now.

Their desks were all set at odd angles throughout the open space, which would present unpredictable targets for any attackers, and allow good concealment points. It was always important to know where cover could be found if necessary.

The large windows lined both side walls of the floor, dangerous and exposing for all those working inside here. This central corridor would be the safest place out of view from any attacker outside who might start shooting in.

Above him, the ceiling was a simple wooden panel design. He could easily break through it with a fist if an exit upwards was necessary. Several smoke detectors were set on more solid panels, and he felt the breeze from an air vent up ahead of them. Chilled air, because it was warm in this enclosed box. No natural air circulated. They would get illnesses passed round with so many in one large space.

It really was a stupid box to work in, he concluded anew, but he was satisfied that he had all the exits and useful areas of the office identified afresh. Each time he visited, he built up a more detailed plan in his mind's eye of the building. It was very similar in design to others on Aria – simple and easy to construct. The new Military Council's building was far more elegantly and tactically designed.

Up ahead, he saw a few nervous looking people hurry out of the now open door to Robiah's small division of the box that was his office. Oneakka fixed his eyes on the open space of the doorway and ignored the people running for cover. He was aware of all of them though as they scurried away, but none of them moved in any way that was questionable.

There was one man, stood far to the left across the open planned office, who stood out though. He was staring in an unusual way.

As Oneakka reached the open doorway of Robiah's office, he snapped his head round and fixed his gaze on the staring man. Halling pulled up behind him, but said nothing.

The man in question physically jerked at the attention, paled and dropped from view.

An Elite follower, most likely. There were some civilians who wished themselves Elite, or admired more fanatically than others. They stared that way sometimes.

They could be interesting individuals though, sometimes with skills that might have gone unnoticed. They were often Elite minds but in bodies that were not designed to be warriors, but that didn't mean they couldn't be useful.

Oneakka locked away the man's face in his memory and continued on into Robiah's tight cube of an office. He supposed it was more private than the other's outside had, but it was still just a smaller box.

There was one desk inside, filling up almost the entire width of the room. Oneakka couldn't decide if Robiah had put it there on purpose to block people back and provide a defensive position for himself, or that he just wanted so much desk space that he didn't mind it being in the way. Oneakka would push it against one wall, bring in another desk, smaller, more manageable. Maybe put a chart up on the wall above the large desk, combine the two areas for a fully observable platform from which to work.

"Honoured Elite," Robiah greeted them in the standard way, but today, for the first time, he seemed to mean it as he rose up from his seat behind his overly large and cluttered desk.

Oneakka noted the difference in Robiah's attitude. He suspected it was due to the threat of the new generation of Quantum. Elite tests had confirmed that the new version of the drug found at Haven was significantly different from previous versions, and that it particularly stimulated certain areas of the human brain that were known to be 'access points' related to the telepathic reading of the Wraith. Seekers, such as Teyla and Si, naturally had far denser neurons in those areas, which either allowed them to use a similar telepathic ability as the Wraith, or perhaps allowed them greater defence against such mind probing. Oneakka hadn't studied much of biology, other than the basics. He knew a Wraith's anatomy inside and out, and a human's enough to know how to restrain, control and, if necessary, kill, but the technical inner workings of the human brain was not something he knew. He would perhaps look into it when he had the time.

For now though, he had one focus.

He planted his feet and crossed his arms, and waited for Robiah to start his report.

People could never stand someone just waiting. Watching and waiting.

Robiah looked away to Halling and back. "I have read the Elite reports and I hope you have received our latest on the identities of the victims in Haven-"

"What have you found?" Halling cut in, surprising Oneakka slightly. Halling was usually the patient one. Maybe he didn't like Robiah either.

The Investigator was good at his work, but the man was too much of a manipulator, a sideways walker - looking for holes in things, looking for just the right angle to send others through instead of him.

Robiah licked his lips as he sat back down in his chair. He had stopped offering Oneakka a place to sit on each of his visits. Oneakka knew people found someone standing in a meeting intimidating, especially a man of his size and attitude. It was a very useful fact.

And right now he could see obvious weakness in Robiah for the first time. But, it wasn't fear for himself, it was something else.

The man's eyes flickered up to Oneakka.

It was something Robiah feared would upset him.

"I have spoken with the contacts I have," Robiah began, "as best I could in the time limit I was given." He couldn't help putting that point in. "And I have few leads that can be considered absolute."

"You have nothing," Oneakka concluded to save them all time.

"I have rumours, talk, sightings of people who supposedly know who supplies the latest generations of Quantum, but only twice have I heard the name Khor. Both of those sources I trust as high level."

"High level?" Halling queried.

Oneakka didn't explain, he let Robiah do it, whilst watching him, and waiting for the man to get to the point.

"By highest we mean closest to the actual targets," Robiah supplied.

"Meaning you have two people who are close to Khor in some way?" Halling interpreted.

"Of sorts, yes," Robiah replied with one of his typical sideways answers.

Oneakka sighed, feeling his patience thinning. Why was it people did not just say what it was that was foremost in their minds and the situation?

Robiah looked up at him, intimidated by the simple sigh.

Oneakka wondered if stunning the guy, dragging him back to the Sythus and questioning him there would be more efficient. There he would be away from his safety support of this building and its staff. There he could face the reality of delaying Elite in their work.

"One I have under surveillance as best I can, and think I can reel him in, but it has to be at the right time."

"And the other?" Halling asked.

Robiah's gaze darted up to Oneakka once more before he let it out in a surrendering sigh. It was about time.

"I have a source," Robiah started, "someone I have had leverage over for a while now. It started back in Dreamstation." Oneakka felt his shoulders tense at just hearing the name. "I had some eyes in the station," Robiah continued, "and they fed me information from time to time. But, after a while, I began to realise that they might just be watching me in return and certain information would occasionally arrive just when I had needed it, just when it would most advantageous to Dreamstation that I know. I couldn't prove it, but I began to have my suspicions as to who it might be on the station, and that they were also using 'other' interested parties' eyes in the station."

"Someone was using the spies to watch their owners?" Halling asked.

"And supplying information for their own benefit," Robiah replied. "Then one day, a most fortunate case fell into my lap - a small time thief working with a more skilled thieving group lead by a woman named Neeva Casol. She was a piece of work, but this man, he was not the brightest star in the galaxy shall we say, and when raiding a bank vault, someone in their group tripped a switch. The place started to go into lockdown and this man, being a very tall individual, was too slow to get out. Enforcement had quite a fight when they opened up the vault, but he was successfully arrested."

Oneakka wondered how big a man had to be not to slip out under a falling gate when your life likely depended on it.

"At the time I was part of a joint taskforce to track this Neeva Casol, and as soon as I got this thief into the interrogation room he sang like a bird. Seems he thinks the whole galaxy is to blame for everything that has befallen him, including blaming Neeva at that point. He gave us all he had, begging to be released in payment. So, I dug out all our suspect pictures, thinking he might have some further information that could be of use. Turns out there was one picture among the lot that _really_ interested him. Creass on Dreamstation."

Oneakka held still.

"But it wasn't Creass in that image that had caught his attention, it was the woman in the background. Creass' bodyguard, part security chief."

Oneakka swore his eyes began to sting just hearing her mentioned. "Seeal," he named the target.

Robiah nodded carefully. "Turns out this thief is her brother, her estranged brother. He had quite a few nasty words to say about her too. So, I sent a message through my eyes on Dreamstation, with just enough information so that only Seeal would know it was about her brother. As I predicted, it turned out she was the one controlling my spies on the station, but now I had some control. Though there was no love lost for her brother, I had enough to get her to start properly supplying me with information."

"You had Creass' bodyguard as an informant?" Halling asked in shock.

"Which you failed to mention to me," Oneakka added, "all this time." Anger burned hot in his chest. He had known this crab had been keeping things from him, but he hadn't realised it had been so 'high level'.

"After you chased them out of Dreamstation, I lost contact with her," Robiah added quickly, one hand up, palm out. "And I still have no idea where Creass is based. She never gave me anything on Creass himself, just certain characters that passed through the station. Without Dreamstation, I didn't think she would be as useful."

Oneakka frowned. Had Robiah been on Belsa the other day? Had that been why Seeal had been in Alliance territory? "But you are in contact with her now," he stated.

"I got word that she was seen passing occasionally through Dreamstation again, and so I left a message that only she would understand with a contact there. She contacted me shortly afterwards and I have met with her only once since. She is the one who first mentioned the name Khor, and my second source confirmed it. I have her looking into Khor, to get anything she can, including a way to trace where he is."

"Creass must know how to contact him," Halling objected.

"She says he doesn't, Khor controls all contact, but there is one other man who might know, and I think it is a name you will be interested in. An ex-Genii commander named Kolya."

Oneakka practically felt Halling snap to attention beside him. "Kolya?"

"Yes. Seeal is getting what she can for me on him as well. I will be meeting with her soon-"

"No," Oneakka stated, "you will bring her in for questioning."

Robiah's expression stilled. "I need her where she is. She is far more useful as an ongoing source, an active link with Creass."

"She has information about The Traitor and her activities in Dreamstation. She will know how the assassination on Athos was organised, and she will know everyone The Traitor had any contact with on Dreamstation," Oneakka stated, as if it wasn't obvious. "You WILL meet with her and we will capture her."

Robiah held up his hands again. "Honoured Elite, please understand that she is a valuable source-"

"She is a collaborator with a traitor and if you withhold her from us," Oneakka told him, moving up closer to the wide desk, "then you will be seen as a collaborator as well."

It was extending logic perhaps a little too far, but Oneakka would make it stick. He would make sure Robiah paid for this.

"Honoured-"

"And she will have information about the new Quantum, this Khor," Halling said with what sounded like hope in his voice, "and likely the dealers and supplier's names to keep your people working through the night for weeks to trace them."

Robiah sighed as he looked away, his lips pursed, his eyes sliding to the door in the corner of the cube behind Oneakka and Halling. It was instinctual to look for a literal physical exit when wanting to run.

"She is valuable," Robiah argued, "and, to be honest, from the information I have about her, she will be very difficult to capture and hold. She has a tendency to escape from any situations not going her way."

Oneakka glowered, feeling more than seeing Halling glance at him.

"You will take us to her, we will capture her, and she will tell us everything she has," Oneakka summarised clearly.

Robiah let out a loud breath and stood up. "If I do bring her into this, then I need to remain involved. If I lose her, then I also lose other sources, and I have her brother to use as means to get out of her what we need."

Oneakka frowned at the prospect of having to work more directly with this man, but if he had history with Seeal, and her brother in custody, then they had a strong tool to use against her. She had given up information before, so why not again.

And he would also get to finish that fight with her. He would look her directly in the eyes, with his fully working, and medication free, eyes and know he had won.

All his work these past months and finally he would have it all. It was likely that she would have more information in her head than Creass himself. As a security lead, she would have been the one to actually run Dreamstation, and would have known every criminal that had passed through it. She would have names, places, and the connections between them. And most importantly, she would have information about what The Traitor had gotten up to, who she spoke to, what she did. And then Seeal would pay herself for her part in it. So many had gone unpunished in Iketani' betrayal, so many assassinated, killed or disappeared, and none put on trial, clear for all to see.

He would make that happen this time.

He would have his enemy and he would punish her as the criminal she was.

00000

In just over an hour, all of the drugged up patients and the injured rioters had all been transferred to the Infirmary, and had been all tested, scanned and treated. John had never seen so much security in the Infirmary, but as it got him out of returning to the treaty talks for the rest of the afternoon, he was happy to help keep watch over the new patients and their visiting friends and/or relatives. It was obvious that Sumner was making a point with so much obvious firepower and muscle around, but then he had a valid point to make. Rumour had it that Sumner had stormed up to Colonel Carter's office after the last refugee patient had been removed, and had all but demanded that the pier's visitors be evicted. It would certainly make life easier in the city, but John couldn't help thinking it would be unfair on the rest of the innocent displaced people who had already lost their homes.

In the entrance to the Infirmary, Colonel Carter stepped into view. Her blonde head turned as she scanned the room, taking in all the faces, guns, and full beds.

As the highest rank in the room, John moved forward to meet her in the middle of the busy Infirmary.

"Everything calm here?" the Colonel asked

"No trouble so far," John replied, "but then most of our 'new friends' have woken up yet," he added, looking round at the newly filled infirmary beds.

"Colonel, Major," Carson's voice cut through the room, and John turned to see the doc waving them over from across the Infirmary.

He was stood by one of the large screens, various displays all dancing brightly across it, all of which John had absolutely no clue about.

"You said you've got some news on this drug, Doctor," Carter started as they reached Carson.

"This isn't just a drug," Carson replied with a grim expression, "this is a sledgehammer."

John frowned with amusement.

"This is a scan of one of our friend's brains," Carson continued, pointing to one small display on the screen, which John could see was vaguely shaped like a brain, but it was tough to tell because it was covered with rapid flashing moving lights.

"Mmm," Carter said like she understood what she was looking at, which she probably did.

"I've never seen _anything_ like this," Carson continued animatedly. "Almost every single neuron and synapse is active. I didn't even know this could happen in a brain, not without killing the person."

"The readings are fluctuating," Carter put in, indicating some readings on the display.

"Aye, constantly, which is possibly why this drug hasn't killed them," Carson replied.

"How exactly?" John asked confused.

"The extreme activity is firing in pulses, bursts through the different areas of their brains," Carson explained as he indicated areas in the scan. "Which stops a complete overload."

"You can overload a brain?" John asked carefully.

"Yes, and I'm shocked none of them have had any seizures and that their autonomic systems are still working properly. Their organs are still functioning, their hearts beating, racing maybe, but their body can't do anything else, not with all this activity."

John pointed to the scan, at one area that seemed to be lit up continuously. "And this bit?"

"The pleasure centres of the brain," Carson replied, "which suggests that this extreme neural activity is pleasurable for them." He sounded unconvinced by the idea.

Carter looked round to the beds holding the still unconscious users. "How long till they come down off their high?"

"The young lady who was looking after them," Carson answered, "told me they took it over eight hours ago."

"An eight hour high?" John asked shocked.

"And there's been no reduction in the drug's affects at all since we brought them in," Carson said with a frown. "She said it could last up to two days."

"That's some trip," John muttered.

"It's very likely that people can die using this drug."

"Because of possible seizures and brain damage?" Carter asked.

"No, neither of those seem to occur according the young lady and from what I've seen so far. The drug is dangerous because these people are burning up extraordinary amounts of energy for this neural activity to continue, as well as the increased demands from their hearts and lungs working overtime to provide such an elevated blood and oxygen supply that the brain is demanding."

John understood that enough. He knew how it felt. "Exhaustion."

"Aye," Carson replied, "and it's a very real danger. These people, if they weren't being look after, didn't have the saline and medications we've given them, could have been put at serious risk by using this drug."

"But, they'll all survive?" Carter asked.

"Aye, but who knows if there's any more of this drug out there with other refugees in the city. As you know, some of the people we've taken in have been severely malnourished. My people have been doing what we can with nutritional basics and the Mess Hall supplies, but some of those more weakened people, if they take this drug they could very easily die from it."

"We'll make sure that doesn't happen, Carson," Carter said calmly as she touched a reassuring hand on the doc's sleeve. "Have you had any results yet on the drug sample itself?"

Carson turned and triggered up another display. "One thing I love about these Ancient machines is how quick they are at analysing things like this, but the interpretation is more complicated." Several new images appeared on the big screen and Carter moved closer, frowning.

"The drug is clearly artificial," Carson reported. "Highly engineered and I wouldn't be surprised if it-"

"Colonel," a deep male voice called from across the Infirmary.

John looked round to see the Marine on duty at the entrance to the Infirmary looking their way, and beside him stood Teyla. John could tell instantly that something was wrong.

"Give us a minute, Doctor," Carter said to Carson before they headed through the Infirmary to where Teyla was waiting for them.

John latched his eyes on Teyla, clocking the tiny indications that something was wrong - a tiny fraction of a frown between her eyebrows, the extra tension to her cheeks and jaw. To anyone else she would look as calm as ever, but to him, he could clearly see she was wound tight.

As they neared her, John saw her gaze slide over his shoulder to the medical displays behind them.

"Honoured Elite Emmagan," Carter greeted her with a smile.

Teyla nodded politely, but her expression remained controlled. "May I speak with you?"

"We can go to my office," Carter suggested.

"It would be best to remain here," Teyla replied quickly, "Since it is about the drug that these people have taken."

How had she heard about that?

"May I see the structural specifications on the drug?" Teyla asked before Carter could say anything. She had recognised the drug on Carson's display even from across the busy room.

"Forgive me, Honoured Elite," Carter replied. "But why are the Elite interested in this?"

Teyla looked up at the Colonel. "There has been a recent development related to his drug that is of concern to us, and will be of concern to Atlantis as well."

"What does it do?" John asked her.

Teyla looked at him, briefly, and there wasn't any sign of anything other than her polite calm control in her controlled expression. No hint to anyone watching that she had been draped naked over him last night. There was only the strong controlled Elite warrior looking back at him. It was as disturbing as it was impressive.

"I cannot disclose anything further just yet," she replied and there was the slightest touch of apology in her tone. "But, I would hope that there has been enough faith built between the Elite and Atlantis that I might have some leeway in this."

Colonel Carter thought about it for a second. "Okay, but I trust that anything that concerns the safety and security of Atlantis will not be withheld from us in return."

Teyla nodded, but she didn't actually agree out loud, which worried John slightly, but the Colonel seemed happy enough. She turned and indicated the far the screen, from where Carson was watching them with a frown.

As the three of them reached him, Carson smiled warmly at Teyla. "Honoured Elite, it is good to see you looking so well," he said, all soft voice and smiling. The last time Carson had seen her had been on the Daedalus and he had just operated on her back wound following Iketani having stabbed her in the back.

Teyla smiled widely in response, which surprised John a little, and a strange little dark feeling stirred in his stomach. There was no reason to feel jealous of Carson, so he squashed it down deep.

"I am pleased to see that you are also well, Doctor," Teyla told him. "And I remain deeply grateful for what you did for me."

Carson smiled, with a touch of pink to his cheeks if John was any judge. "After you helped saved me from the clutches of that vile woman, it was the least I could do."

"Nevertheless, I remain grateful, Doctor," Teyla finished with another smile before she turned her attention to the display of the drug's results. She pulled an electronic pad out of a coat pocket and tapped away at it.

John moved a little closer, brushing briefly close by Carson. "Look at you being all charming," he said quietly to the doctor.

Carson blustered immediately, and John thought he heard Carter snigger behind him, but he could have been wrong. He turned his attention to looking over Teyla's shoulder to her pad.

Her shoulders lowered a fraction. "This is not the latest generation of the drug," she announced.

"Which is a good thing?" John guessed.

She turned to face him and Carter. "This drug, known as Quantum, is several generations older than the latest version, which is of concern to the Elite. I heard you had arrested the person who was watching over them."

John was impressed, and a little worried, at how she knew that too. Someone among the refugees must be talking to the Elite, which was a surprise considering their overriding dislike of anything relating to the Alliance.

"We do have one woman," Carter confirmed.

"I need to speak with her," Teyla requested.

"We've already questioned her. She says the drug was purchased from someone in the Alliance delegation, but that she didn't know his name," Carter replied.

"It is _very_ important that we find out exactly who that person is, and we will have to search each room and every single person from the Alliance delegation and all the displaced people you have been caring for."

Carter didn't react as dramatically as John did. "Search everyone?" She asked. "As much as we agree that such illegal drugs should not be in the city, I'm not sure a full citywide search of all our guests would be advantageous to any of us right now."

Teyla licked her lips as she glanced away. She let out a soft breath and looked back up to the Colonel, her gaze sliding to meet John's on the way. He was tempted to smile at her encouragingly, but stopped himself with so many eyes watching.

"The Elite believe it is possible," she said quietly, "that the Wraith are involved in some way in spreading the latest version of this drug."

"The Wraith?" John asked confused. "Why?"

"Over six hundred Quantum users were recently found sealed into a chamber, all fed upon by the Wraith. There was evidence enough to suggest that the Wraith were not just feeding, but attempting to access their thoughts."

"I thought Wraith were able to read human minds anyway?" Carter asked.

"Only superficially," Teyla replied, "The most immediate thought passing through their victim's mind. While the Queens can push deeper and control humans, the males rarely have such an ability. This new version of Quantum has been developed to stimulate the areas of the human brain that work as a bridge of sorts for the Wraith telepathic ability. A Wraith that fed on anyone who has taken this drug, or had it slipped into their food or drink, might be able to access every single thought and memory that user has ever had. They would have access to everything," Teyla stressed, "including military codes, Portal addresses, names and places."

The location of Earth.

"And you think this version of Quantum could be here?" Colonel Carter asked worriedly.

"I do not know," Teyla replied honestly, "but if any version of Quantum is here, then there is no reason to assume that only one version is available. Why sell the most advanced version to those who cannot pay well for it?"

John looked away to the unconscious refugees and back. "You think someone might be smuggling Quantum between the Alliance representatives and wanted to make a few extra bucks by selling the cheaper stuff to the refugees?"

"It is possible. Quantum is a pervasive problem that has far too many supplying and dealing it, but the latest worrying version is different. It is brand new and it is possible that it comes from only one source. Oneakka and Halling are currently tracing possible sources on its single supplier, but if there is a dealer of it here, contained in the city, then we _must _find them and learn what they know."

"And perhaps someone has purposefully let the most dangerous version of Quantum enter Atlantis," Carter concluded.

"How long does Quantum stay in the bloodstream?" Carson asked from John's left.

"It can still be detected a week after its use," Teyla replied, "But this new version may be different."

"If they find a way of permanently infecting people with this stuff," John said, "then everyone could be read by the Wraith."

Carter tapped her earpiece and stepped away. "Colonel Sumner, this is Colonel Carter. I want a complete lockdown of the east pier. We..."

John didn't hear the rest of the order as she turned away, talking quietly. He looked back to Teyla and Carson.

"How do the Wraith get the drug to this supplier and any dealers?" Carson was asking her.

"Wraith worshippers most likely," Teyla replied. "Who themselves might be infected, as you put it," she added to John with a nice small smile, "with this new drug."

"Have you found a way to counteract the effects of Quantum?" Carson asked.

"No, once the drug takes effect, which is within minutes of its consumption, there is no stopping the reaction."

Colonel Carter arrived back at John's side. "We're closing down the pier and will start a complete search of everyone and every room, but the Alliance members..."

Teyla nodded. "I can request several more Elite join us to help conduct the search of our Alliance delegation."

"That would be appreciated," Carter replied. "At best, this is going to take the rest of the day and into the night. I'm going to suggest we close the treaty talks for the rest of the day until the search is complete."

"If I might call for more Elite now, then we can search the delegates as they leave the auditorium, which might hopefully catch some off guard," Teyla requested.

John sighed. "This day is really not going well," he muttered.

Sumner so wasn't going to be happy having more Elite in the city.

00000  
TBC


	8. Prisoners

**Chapter 8 – Prisoners**

It had taken over twelve hours, but the entire occupied areas of the east pier had been thoroughly searched. The four extra Elite drafted in to assist, most of which John hadn't met before, had helped a lot. They been the ones to conduct all the Alliance delegations searches, no doubt getting less complaints that John and his teams had from their other unhappy visitors in the east pier. To help matters, the Elite had a type of scanner that could 'sniff' out components of Quantum, which Rodney had patched into something in the air vents that the city used to detect outbreaks, and the resulting full city scan had turned up several stashes of Quantum that some of their visitors had hidden away on hearing of the searches. They had also found two more groups all flying high on Quantum, and the Infirmary was now even more packed than before.

The total result of so much work was a small collection of silver liquid vials and five unhappy dealers. Four of them were from varying refugee communities, and who had all been taken into a room with Sumner and had sung like canaries. He hadn't hurt them, but whatever he had said had worked wonders. They had all confessed to getting their supply from the fifth dealer, who was one of the Alliance visitors, an assistant to the ambassador from Sunkara, which had apparently caused a right stir. Sunkara was one of the most respected worlds among the Alliance, but the Elite Kari had told him that those from Sunkara were traders to their bones, so the chance to make some profit out of smuggling some Quantum into Atlantis had probably looked like a great opportunity to the guy.

The Sunkaran dealer had been as nervous as anything when he had been arrested by the Elite and handed over to Sumner for all to see in the corridors. His boss, the Sunkaran ambassador, had been staring daggers at the man since he had been slammed in the brig. John imagined that when all this got back to the Alliance it would hurt the Sunkaran ambassador's professional standing and he wasn't happy about it.

But, there was good news in all the mess. The Quantum they had found was all of an older stock and hadn't been souped-up the Wraith.

And there was the blissful fact that they could maybe all get some sleep soon. John checked his watch, it was almost three in the morning and he had to be awake for the negotiations that were continuing in the morning. That was if this latest event didn't make Nolfi and his followers decide to abandon the talks completely after the late night search.

"Is this everything, Rodney?" Colonel Carter asked from across the Control Room.

"Everything the sensors can detect," he replied. "But, there could be more of it that the sensors can't detect."

John looked away from the haul of Quantum and, blinking his dry eyes, he moved across to stand behind Rodney's shoulder. "Remind me why again."

"Anything that's been opened or used will release small particles into the air, which all gets circulated through the city's air system and through the series of highly sophisticated sensors that sniff out known viruses and bacteria, as we're all familiar with." Yes, they were, especially after a false positive that had sealed up the city last year, all thanks to Rodney's tinkering with the sophisticated sensors. John was tempted to remind Rodney of it again, but the scientist was getting tetchy this evening, and right now John couldn't blame him.

"So, if some Quantum wasn't opened and the vials were still tightly sealed, then there's a chance we've missed some," John concluded tiredly.

"Yes, for the third time," Rodney complained.

"I'm tired," John confessed as he rubbed one dry eye. It wasn't like he had gotten much sleep with Teyla last night anyway.

"And all of the Quantum we've found the Elite have identified as old versions of the drug and not the dangerous new Wraith-altered version," Colonel Carter repeated herself, as if trying to organise her own sleepy brain. "So, for now, Atlantis and its personnel are in the clear."

"Except if any of these people are read by the Wraith in the future," Sumner stated too loudly for John's tired ears, "then they have the plan of the city and our names and faces."

Which was a very worrying thought. "We just have to hope that the Elite get a handle on the source of this new Quantum," John concluded.

"Because that's the best thing to always do, trust the Elite," Sumner scoffed.

John glanced round at him. "They did a pretty good job helping us today." He couldn't stand the man's paranoia at this time of the night, or was it technically morning yet? It had been a really long day.

"They shouldn't have allowed any into our city in the first place."

"The same argument could be made that we shouldn't have let the drug in," Carter replied. "We will need to review our security procedures."

"The sensors now know about the basic structure of Quantum," Rodney put in, gesturing to his computer, "So in the future, we should get a heads up if more of it comes into the city."

"Really?" John asked happily surprised.

"Of course," Rodney replied up at him. "Haven't you been listening?"

"So, Atlantis is clean and we should be able to keep it that way," Carter clarified again.

"Yes," Rodney repeated.

"Except we've got two Alliance criminals in our brig and a lot of really pissed off refugees, half of who now hate us as much as the Alliance," Sumner put in, Mr Cheery as always.

"It wasn't that bad," John couldn't help but mutter, too loudly, because he felt all eyes turn on him. "I think they'll calm down by the morning," he put in quickly. Stupid tired brain talking without thinking.

"Maybe it'll get some of them to leave," Sumner muttered.

"Considering how long some of them have been staying here, it's amazing we haven't had any trouble before now," John pointed out.

"I agree," Colonel Carter uttered next to him. "But, we perhaps have a growing problem in the east pier now, one we're going to have to keep a closer eye on."

"There's still the Beta site," Sumner added, "many of them can go live there once the full sweep and water source checks are complete."

"If they want to go," Rodney added. "Here they've got hot running water, food ready prepared when they want it, and we protect them from the Wraith and the Alliance."

"We can't keep them all here," Sumner protested.

"Let's just leave that particular discussion for another day, once the Alliance delegation have left," Carter interjected. "When we're all be more awake and hopefully everyone on the pier will be thinking more clearly."

Movement to the right drew John's eye and his mood lifted instantly as he saw Teyla heading up the steps to the Control Room, the other Elite, Kari, beside her.

Sumner had allowed the Elite to question the Sunkaran prisoner, which was surprising, but then there was video feed and half a team in the brig with them listening and happy to report every word to the Colonel.

"Honoured Elite," Carter said as she moved forward to meet them.

Teyla's eyes lifted from the collection of Quantum to Colonel Carter. "Colonel. We have attempted to interrogate the prisoner."

"Attempted?" John asked surprised as he reached Colonel Carter's side.

Teyla's gaze slid to him and she gave him a lopsided smile. "He was very talkative, but had little to share. He says he traded for the Quantum back on his homeworld and that he did not know the man he purchased the drug from."

"But, it's not the worrying version the Quantum, right?" Rodney checked.

"No, none of it is, but it is still a recent enough version that we should track the suppler, see where it leads us," Kari replied this time.

Teyla looked across to Colonel Sumner and then to Colonel Carter. "I would like to ask one of my fellow Elite warriors to come to Atlantis. She is able to read another's emotions and should be able to help us ascertain whether this man is telling us the truth."

"Madesh could also help us," Kari put in to Teyla.

Teyla nodded. "Yes, he is another man who works with us."

"I remember him," Colonel Carter cut in, saving their explanation. "We would be happy for any assistance, as long as anything that is learnt is shared with us freely."

"Of course," Teyla replied. "Nalla and Madesh are ready to travel here as needed, while Kari and I will depart." John almost jerked at the news. "The samples of this Quantum can be more thoroughly tested by an Elite laboratory, where we may be able to trace where the drug was manufactured. If we may take some samples with us?"

"Of course," Carter replied, nodding to an Airman to the side. John looked over to see two of the bags containing the vials were separated off and the man walked them over to Teyla and Kari. Kari took them with a vague stern nod.

"When will you return?" Colonel Carter asked.

"There are four Elite here already, so there should be no problems with security," Teyla replied, not answering directly. "I will return when we have something constructive to report." John didn't like the sound of that. He had been looking forward to another night with her, even it was half a tired night. Now she was leaving out of the blue?

"Thank you for all your help," Carter said extending her hand.

Teyla shook her hand. "Should you need us, one of my fellow Elite stationed here will know how to contact us."

"Good hunting," Carter added as she nodded to Kari, not shaking her hand. John suspected the Colonel might lose it if she did. Kari had never been one of the friendliest of the Elite, and she still seemed somewhat suspicious of him despite how often he had worked with the Elite now. She was a stern woman, but one hell of a fighter if the reports from the Marines who had sparred with her the other evening were anything to go by. But, that was hardly a surprise for an Elite, but then the Marines hadn't actually seen a female Elite in action like John had. He had seen it up close and personal in more ways than one.

Teyla turned then to meet John's gaze directly. "My father hopes that you will still be able to attend the feast in Tjaru next week."

John smiled at her, understanding that it wasn't just a message from Torren. "Hopefully," he replied with a smile. "I wouldn't want to miss that steamed berry pudding thing from the last feast."

She smiled and nodded. "I will pass on your request to him."

She nodded in that polite regal way of hers towards Colonels Carter and Sumner and turned away with Kari to leave. John glanced at Carter and with her nod, he followed the Elite.

He caught up with Teyla with two long strides as she descended the steps outside the Control Room. "There any Quantum problems on Athos?" He asked carefully.

"It is occasionally seen," Teyla admitted quietly.

Kari moved ahead of them, moving faster down the main steps to where two bags were set to one side, a Marine standing over them protectively. Kari picked both the bags up, presumably one being Teyla's, and moved towards the open space of the Gate Room, clearly ready and anxious to leave.

"I take it she's had enough of babysitting politicians?" He asked Teyla as they walked down the steps more slowly, the Gate activating across the room. He was out of time with her again.

"Yes, I believe we all have had enough," Teyla replied with a smile in her voice.

"You'll be coming back though, right?" John asked, his mouth running away with itself again.

"I hope to," Teyla replied, but her attention was focused forward. "Depending on how our hunt goes," she added with more of a proper smile.

The wormhole activated loudly, exploding out and snapping back in, ready to drag Teyla away from him.

"Hope it goes quick and easy," John replied. "And if you need any back up, you know where to find us." They had reached the bottom of the steps.

"Yes, we do," Teyla replied more formally. "Otherwise, if we cannot return," she said turning to face him, "there is hopefully a feast to enjoy in Tjaru."

He smiled at that, pleased that she would try to be there, that she was saying it out loud. He held her gaze more directly than normal when in public. He stretched out a hand to her to shake her hand, and, with a light smile, she reached out and her hand slid into his. It was a familiar hand to him now, her fingers delicate, but strong, and the warm golden skin of her hand tempting him to press a kiss to the back of her fingers, as he had done several times playfully with her in private. It always called back their first proper parting, when she had dropped him on a desolate world with a Gate back to Atlantis, and he had kissed the back of her hand.

Looking into her eyes, knowing he had a split second until someone would think the goodbye too long, he brushed his thumb over the back of her hand again.

She blinked, smiled and looked away.

Then she walked away.

He watched her go, wishing he could actually go with her, help her track down this dangerous new Quantum. He could watch her back for her, but he couldn't.

He could only hope that maybe she might need his help, and until then, he would have to just wait.

000000

Aldine was a good planet to meet anyone. It was a busy, bustling planet, with strong trading ties through the Portal. The Portal ran all day and all night practically, bringing in people and supplies from off world, and sending out the continuous carts of grain, vegetables, and fish to other Alliance worlds. Aldine was technically in Alliance space, but little technology had found its way onto the planet, the Aldine people preferring their basic carts and pre-industrial lifestyle. It was seen as something of a backwater planet, and for some reason the Alliance military enforcement had little interest in it, for there was only one small base close to the Portal and it was well known that those stationed inside were bored out of their brains. They tended to deal with that problem by drinking the local beer and playing card games with those that brewed the beer.

To be sure not to attract any attention though, Seeal had travelled to Aldine among a group of Ancestor monks from Malakien. A simply acquired spare robe of their order had been her disguise, and once on Aldine no one would approach her. The monks travelled constantly throughout the Alliance in an attempt to convince the entire populace to return to Ancestor worship, and so rarely attracted any real attention. People tended to look away in fact, the faith in the Ancestors difficult for many considering the horrific reality of what the Wraith had done to their worlds before the Alliance had formed.

Once through the Portal, Seeal moved quickly away from the monks, slipping past two Military personnel playing cards in the sunshine, and into the first empty lane she found between two old leaning buildings. As soon as she was out of view of anyone, she removed her robe, folded it up and tucked it into a small bag she had slung around her back. Her knife sat securely against her lower back, she exited the other end of the lane and stepped out into the wide busy roads running along the docks. Massive ships sat in the harbour, with sailors and traders loading and unloading, wagons and small carts lined up close by to drop off or pick up the supplies. People, in all manner of differing clothing styles and skin colours, milled around, talking, trading, or were sat outside the many taverns along the dockside, beer in hand watching the activity. Children of various ages ran around legs, overexcited by the noise and the impressive ships, whilst mothers scolded between purchasing bags of fish and grain straight off the back of the carts. It was the most perfect place to go unseen.

Her destination was the oldest tavern set at the furthest end of the busiest section of this part of the docks. It was a squat building with only one upper floor which seemed to be leaning more precariously forward each time she visited. It had been almost a year since she had last visited, but nothing would change here.

She walked past the old tavern without looking at it at first, moving round the side, as if to follow the carts and traders back into the lanes to the Portal. She stopped, pretending to have to deal with her hair that needed pulling back off her face, and took a good look at the surrounded area. There was nothing out of place that she could see. She looked around the back of the tavern, where a small garden stood empty this morning, the sunlight not yet reaching into it, which was why everyone was currently sat out the front of the buildings. She checked the windows as best she could without drawing attention to herself, and felt satisfied that all was well for now.

She headed back to the dockside and stood among a group of elderly Athosians who were admiring one particular ship as it moved off into the wider waters. The ship's large sails unfurled spectacularly and some children screamed in delight. Seeal watched as the unseen breeze caught in the sails and the ship began to turn and move away at greater speed.

She exchanged a few polite smiles with the elderly Athosians, and turned away, heading back along the dock. She turned into the entrance of the dockside tavern with the step of someone who was relaxed and used to being on Aldine.

It was dim inside and her eyes took a moment to adjust, but she could already hear that all was well inside still. There weren't too many inside, but busy enough that no one paid her any mind. One family were loudly ordering a small boy to eat his boiled fish whilst he cried that he hated it, and at the main bar, several old sailors sat with their strong thick hands around big cups of beer.

She nodded to a few people, as was expected here on Aldine, as she moved through the tavern, heading around the side of the bar to where the tables and stools overlooked the windows to the docks outside. An open doorway ahead, its dividing curtain pulled aside, lead to the back room, which held several more tables. She could already see that one table was occupied, with Robiah.

He sat in the far corner table, as usual having selected the best strategically placed seat and leaving her the worst. He looked relaxed and deep in thought as he looked out of the window to his left, watching the docks.

She brushed against the dividing curtain as she entered the back room, thereby 'accidently' pulling it a little further across the doorway. There was no one else sat in the room, and he looked round immediately.

Instantly she saw that there was something different about him today, something tight around his eyes, and he smiled as he sat up straight in his chair as she moved towards his table.

"I do enjoy this planet," he told her and she stopped abruptly. Why was he being so polite and approachable?

She narrowed her eyes at him.

His smile dimmed slightly. "The situation has changed considerably, Seeal-."

"It has," she interrupted, taking control of the conversation as she glanced out of the window and then towards the back door that led out to the garden behind the tavern. Everything looked clear. "I am leaving Creass' organisation," she told him, still standing, for the sense of wrongness was growing stronger. She needed to sort this quickly and leave. "This will be our last meeting," she told him.

He began to reply, straightening up taller in his seat, but she heard a yelp from the main area of the tavern behind her, and she began to turn towards the rising sound of the scrabble of stools and the running of feet.

She saw nothing of the other room though, for the curtain was moving aside and the doorway was filling with the massive wide figure of the Elite warrior from Belsa. His scarred face was etched into her mind, the tattoos like a blazing warning, and his large sleek muscular arms crossed over his chest.

She had played through in her mind what she would do if she ever came up against him again. How she would stand her ground, fight better than before, strike before he could react – that she would be faster, stronger, and not be afraid of him the next time.

However, the fear ran up the inside of her throat again, pushing away her logical mind and shouted two blazing facts directly into her cortex – that she had to run from him, and that she was in a very small room of which he was blocking one exit.

Oh, and that he was smiling victoriously at her.

She backed away immediately, quickly turning, Robiah shouting something at her, but her hand was already around the handle of her knife at her back, and the back door to the tavern was already two feet away from her.

Only it slammed open and another man filled the doorway, taller and dressed in a long dark coat. Long hair pattered against his leather coat as his arm rose and a stunner pointed directly at her face. She braked instantly, her eyes registering the Wraith tattoos set across his steady trigger finger.

"Stand down," the new Elite ordered, calmly and loudly.

"Seeal," Robiah called to her. "Don't do anything," he ordered her.

"She can try," the first scarred Elite stated from across the small room. He had stepped further into the back room, making it feel half the size of before.

Her heart pounding, Seeal quickly assessed all her options. They had both the doors and there was no other way out of this room, other than through the window beyond Robiah. She glanced at it and quickly played through what it would take to get through the glass, what she could do on the other side. Except she would still have two Elite after her, one on each side as they exited the tavern. And they had stunners, and the luck of heavy rainfall from last time wasn't going to happen again today.

She could fight, go for the taller Elite, could maybe take him by surprise, but she had seen the stunner on the scarred Elite's belt as well – alongside the blades.

She had no options for escape, for now. She accepted that fact in an instant.

"Let go of the knife," the tall Elite ordered.

She slowly released her hold of the smooth warm wooden handle and held her hands outwards, empty, so that there would be no misunderstandings.

"Turn," the tall Elite ordered and she slowly obeyed, though it was against every instinct to turn her back to a gun, even a stunner, pointed at her, but these were Elite and for now she would have to play along. She turned slowly, hands out, and felt him tug the knife free from her belt and then pull free the strap of her bag. She rolled her shoulders so it would drop into his hands. She didn't care as it only held the robe, some dried fruit, and a spare knife.

What she did care about was Robiah, who she fixed her attention on, feeling hatred bubble up inside her.

"We had an agreement," she told him through clenched teeth.

Robiah had stood up from his seat and held up his hands. "This is an Elite matter now, Seeal. The situation has changed too dramatically."

"What has changed is that you got what you wanted and now you're throwing me to the Elite," she replied angrily, but keeping her control in place.

"If you want to get out of this in one piece-"

"Enough," the scarred Elite stated interrupting them. "We get her up to the ship _now_."

Robiah looked away to the man and Seeal saw his jaw work with impatience. "She came here alone."

"I know that," the scarred Elite replied with something close to dark satisfaction. She finally made herself look back at him, facing the demon that had haunted her nightmares these last few days. She would not fear him.

He held her gaze tauntingly, but she refused to look away, to show any fear. He would not intimidate her, even if he did currently have the upper hand. Because clearly they needed something from her, or they wouldn't have held fire, so she had something to work with there.

It couldn't just be about Creass, because Robiah would likely have already told them that she wouldn't give up any information on him.

She had no idea how Elite got their information out of people. They were considered to be heroes of the Alliance, so the promise of brutality and murder was likely out, but they were savage fighters and she had no idea how they felt about torture. She suspected the scarred Elite wouldn't have any trouble since it probably fit into his fanatical need for sacrifice for a higher cause that all Elite had.

"We take her to the ship," the Elite told Robiah, though he didn't look away from her, keeping the challenging staring match going. She remembered doing this with him back on Dreamstation. He hadn't looked away then and she suspected he wouldn't now, but she wasn't going to cower.

"Every minute she's on this planet, she's working out how to escape."

She lifted her chin higher. He was right of course.

"We get her to the ship, in restraints," he added with a nasty smile.

She felt the other taller Elite moving behind her, heard the stunner slid into its housing on his hip. She considered the changing options of escape as she glanced down to the shift of the tall Elite's shadow across the floor.

Strong hands closed around her elbows though, pulling them back and securing the restraints above her elbows and at her wrists. She calculated how to break his hold before he snapped the last part of the restraints into place, but she felt the other Elite's eyes on her still. Not yet.

The last snap and her elbows and forearms were restrained. She knew a few ways out of these, but they required tools and time to work on it. She had neither.

"I am sorry it had to be this way, Seeal," Robiah said from the left and she looked round at him with contempt.

"Move," the scarred Elite ordered as he moved across the room, his presence filling the space and itching at her nerves again, but she held her ground.

The Elite behind her pulled on her arm though, and she reluctantly turned away and followed the pull out into the empty garden out back. The Elite in front let go of her arm, but from behind one of the scarred Elite's big oafish hands closed completely around her right upper arm.

He shoved her forward to follow the other Elite, as behind them she heard Robiah saying something. He was coming with them apparently, good because she had some choice words for him.

The taller Elite ahead of them had reached the end of the garden and she and the other Elite followed. As they walked along the uneven path past the empty chairs and tables, she scanned the entire contents of the garden quickly, just moving her eyes, keeping her head facing forward.

There was little to use as a weapon, but if she could get away now, run into the carts moving away from the docks...

To the right, there were some pots the tavern's gardener had been planting with flowers, and beside them there was a sack of soil in which there was buried a small trowel. Its handle was barely visible, but if she kicked up the soil, perhaps...

The Elite's hand tightened around her upper arm, a silent warning, and he pushed her ahead faster, past the trowel. Damn him.

There was only one more option that she could see. Several buckets that probably were used to transport water, if she could kick one just right...

"Don't," the scarred Elite stated aggressively in warning.

Annoyed and frustrated that he had anticipated her plans so easily, she couldn't stay silent.

"I was looking at the flowers," she lied.

"Their soil maybe," the Elite replied, no doubt remembering how successfully she had used a handful of dirt against him last time.

"I'm glad to hear I made such an impression on you," she replied over her shoulder. "How are your eyes?"

"I see fine," he replied darkly. They had looked annoyingly normal back in the tavern. They could at least be red or infected.

The garden came to an end and her few weak options of distractions or potential weapons with it. She still had a knife in her boot, but she wasn't in the best state to either reach it or use it effectively.

As she was marched across the cart road, she noticed how little the traders were reacting. She would have thought two Elite warriors escorting a woman in restraints would cause more of a stir on Aldine, but the locals just paused to give way though, a few nodding to the Elite. One old man bowed and then scowled at her.

She rolled at her eyes at the spectacle.

At least if word got back to Creass somehow, he would not suspect her of having been an informant at having required two Elite to capture her.

Across the busy roads leading from the docks, there was only rough open ground ahead, and soon enough a small transport craft came into view, parked between two large storage buildings. She cursed herself for not having checked further afield from the tavern when she had arrived here.

The Elite pushed at her arm, steering her towards the craft, as ahead the tall Elite waved some kids away from their loud speculations about the transport craft. The kids, upon seeing Elite warriors approaching, dropped open their mouths for a moment before running away as fast as they could, chattering and squealing.

She saw the tall Elite smile as he turned, triggering open the craft's hatch.

The kids would probably be telling their tales of seeing real live Elite warriors to their friends for weeks. She guessed she would be cast in the role of something horrible, like a Wraith worshipper. She was in the military system now, in a whole new world of fanatical Wraith hunting and political driving Military power.

She reached the hatch to the craft and the tall Elite reached out to pull her up inside as the other one pushed her up. She was surprised at the assistance, but guessed it was necessary when she couldn't use her arms to climb up inside.

It was surprisingly bright inside the back part of the craft, which was decked out with two lines of seats on either side and more at the far end. The scarred Elite pulled and then pushed her down towards the seats to the left. She sat down heavily but didn't let out a sound.

Robiah entered the craft last and she watched him with narrowed eyes as he sealed the hatch closed and moved past her to take a seat across from her. He gave her a grim smile.

She looked away from him.

The scarred Elite moved in front of her and crouched down. His thick forearm pressed over her lower legs and he pulled her knife out of the inside of her boot.

Wraith shit.

The knife disappeared around the back of his belt and his hand returned with a restraint lead. She watched as he secured the restraint around one of her ankles. She was tempted to kick him, but held back because he would no doubt block it and then would probably stun her. As he rose up from the floor of the craft, he gave her a scowling look that suggested to her that he had felt the tightening in her leg at just thinking about kicking him.

He moved backwards away from her, the lead attached to the restraint dropping to the floor of the craft between them and he set his boot on it. If she did try to bolt, she would have to dislodge his weight off the restraint lead. She suspected he weighed considerably more than she did. It seemed extreme overkill anyway, as if she had anywhere to go. At least until the hatch opened.

He shifted to sit down directly opposite her, which forced Robiah to slid quickly out the way or be sat on by the Elite warrior. She almost smiled at that, but kept control of herself. She watched the Elite as he sat down, his boot securely planted on the lead and he sneered victoriously at her.

He hated her, she decided. Well, she didn't like him either.

"Where am I going to run exactly?" She asked him logically as the craft's engines roared softly to life under them.

"Nowhere," the Elite replied with satisfaction.

"We haven't searched her properly," Robiah noted, annoyingly, as the craft began to lift up from its hidden parking space.

"She's not carrying anything else she can use between here and the ship," the Elite replied, not taking his cold eyes off her.

"I showed you our file on her," Robiah added, "she's exceptionally skilled at escape. One account said she killed someone with a toothpick she had hidden under her tongue."

Seeal frowned at that slightly, but kept her gaze locked with the Elite, not letting him intimidate her.

"Stupid place to hide a pick," he replied to Robiah though, his threatening gaze never leaving its battle with hers. "Doubt that happened."

He was right, it was a stupid story, but close.

"It was a hairpin," she told him with a tight mocking smile. "And it was a computer lock I opened, not someone's throat."

"Break through doors with computer locks often?" the Elite asked in a way that suggested there was a particular door and lock he had in mind.

"She wasn't in Haven," Robiah said with impatience.

She had had enough of the investigator's voice and broke her staring battle with the Elite, feeling satisfied with her own control now and that the fear had been overcome. She looked at Robiah with the same stare.

"They forced me into this, Seeal," Robiah said immediately. "No one in the Alliance goes against the Elite."

"No one, anywhere," the Elite stressed, but Seeal kept her gaze on Robiah.

"You lied to me."

"You are a criminal," the scarred Elite put in with a scoffing tone. "You lie in your sleep."

She looked back at him defiantly, hating that judgemental tone. These Elite really did think themselves the superior beings of the galaxy just because they killed Wraith, throwing themselves into death, which they thought meant that everything they believed was somehow true.

"Tell me one law I have broken," she demanded, staring right into the Elite's cold blue eyes.

He laughed at her, but it turned more into a snarl. He sat forward, all threatening muscle and dark tattoos. She held her chin up, her mouth closed, and forced herself not to nervously swallow as her body wanted her to do.

"You were Creass' bodyguard," he told her.

"I was his security lead on Dreamstation," she corrected technically. "I kept that place in order, kept law there. If it hadn't been for me there would have been a thousand murders a week on that station."

"Because it was filled with criminals," the Elite replied angrily.

"Who were none of my concern," she replied. "I kept order. I never once involved myself in their dealings."

He narrowed his eyes at her, clearly unimpressed.

"Semantics will make no difference here, Seeal," Robiah offered. "Not with the Elite." He said it like he was trying to help her.

She looked at the Investigator with rising anger. "And didn't I help you? Help the Alliance keep track of the worst on the station?"

"Because he was blackmailing you," the Elite put in.

The craft banked slightly, vibrating as the taller Elite piloted them up through the high atmosphere over Aldine, but she didn't look away to the viewscreen. She didn't need to see what would be waiting for her.

"And what of my worthless brother, Robiah?" She asked Robiah calmly. "Will you still keep your word?"

Robiah glanced aside. There was something he hadn't told her. "I will see what I can do."

"What you can do?! You _promised_ me."

"It's not my fault if he gets himself into trouble, Seeal," Robiah argued looking back at her again. "Your brother has a knack for doing so."

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You said you were cleaning him up, would send him back home."

"He volunteered to go into the field for us," Robiah replied.

She shook her head at him, her anger tightening and rising to boiling point. He had sent Ulfur back out among criminals. "Back to drink and drugs? What a surprise that he would make that offer."

"He has been very helpful, especially now."

"And that's all that's important to you," she said low and angry. "You use people, discard them and move on. All for your greater good, no doubt."

Out the corner of her eye, she could see the Elite still watching her. He would not lose his focus, and even if he did, she had no way to exploit it here, nowhere to go. Except to fight for her freedom. That was all that really mattered. It always had been.

She looked away from Robiah in disgust and locked eyes with the Elite again. "If I give you the information that I have on whatever it is that you so desperately are after as to waste time capturing me, then you let me go."

The Elite didn't even blink. "You're not going anywhere. You will pay for your crimes."

"What crimes?" She demanded. "Working a legally contracted job outside Alliance space? Quick, there are so many more out there that you must get them all," she mocked.

She saw something shift in the blue eyes, but she wasn't sure what it was.

"Conspiracy," he said.

"I conspired with no one," she replied. "I had nothing to do with anything that was discussed of a criminal nature on Dreamstation."

He leant further forward almost nearing her across the craft. "You can speak technical definitions all you want, but you knew what Creass was from the start. You watched his back, and you let that traitor onto Dreamstation."

Of course this would be about Iketani. Seeal leant forward herself, the constraints digging into her upper arms. "I told him _not_ to let that woman on the station," she insisted, almost losing some of her control. "I told him and he ignored me."

"But you knew what she was," he replied angrily in return.

"The Wraith tattoos were the big giveaway," she replied sarcastically, and purposefully slid her gaze to his own dark ink around the scar slicing across one side of his face.

He didn't respond in the least as she looked back into his gaze. He was not sensitive about his scars, probably thought of them as war wounds. She found herself looking back to the scar with more interest. It looked like one deep slice, but there was more extensive damage to the skin than a simple cut would cause. How he hadn't lost his eye had to have been a miracle. The tattoos, which formally had appeared a riotous mass around the scar, were actually smaller and more intricate and set specifically around the damage.

She imagined the pain of being tattooed on his face was nothing compared to how the original wound had hurt. The scar looked old, the skin well healed. He had been young when it happened.

Despite her better judgement, she felt a sudden empathy for him. She crushed it quickly, and locked her gaze back with his.

His eyes held hers still, cold blue. She hated the cold.

"I played no part in Iketani' involvement with Creass or Kolya," she said and there was an immediate reaction from the Elite warrior.

"How was she involved with Kolya?" He demanded.

Seeal held still. They hadn't known about Kolya and Iketani. She had something to work with here for sure. "If I tell you what you need to know," she said clearly, "then you let me go."

He was shaking his head before she had finished her terms. "You will tell us everything you know, tell us where Creass is, and then you will be judged."

She watched him watching her. There was nothing to read in his expression but stern aggressive confidence. And that ethical superiority of the Elite.

Which she realised she could use.

"As in put to death?" She asked him directly.

"I don't get to choose the method of your punishment," he replied.

"But you would hand me over to those who would kill me?"

He sat back and sighed as if bored. She knew that technique – it was one of her favourites.

"But then I suppose killing is not something that turns an Elite's stomach," she pushed.

He looked away from her, out to the front.

It was his first tell and she latched onto it immediately. From the overheard flow of radio conversation from the front of the craft, she could tell that they would be reaching their destination, presumably an Elite ship, at any moment. She needed to strike a deal now, with this Elite who, despite his intimidation and arrogance had given away that he had a moral compass. He was good at reading too, so she suspected he had believed some of what she had honestly told him. If this aggressive angry Elite could agree to her terms, then surely the other Elite could be no worse than him.

They were said to be heroes, well, heroes didn't have people killed for what they didn't do.

"I will tell you all that I know, with the one exception being Creass' current location," she stated as confidently and boldly as she could. The Elite looked at her with hate in his eyes again. He didn't like being manipulated. "I will honestly answer all the questions you ask, other than where he is. Creass is far from a good man, but he gave me a job and a safe place to sleep for the last ten years, and I will not betray him."

The Elite watched her, but she could tell he was thinking, so she kept going.

"And in return, once whatever this current dangerous situation is that has Robiah shitting himself," the Elite's cheek moved slightly – had that almost been a smile? "Then I get to go free. I'll leave Alliance space, go right across to the other side of the galaxy, and have nothing to do with anyone you could ever have issues with. I will tell you every single piece of intell I gathered on Iketani, all of it, and then you let me go."

A heavy shadow slid through the craft – they were entering a landing bay, but she kept her eyes on the Elite.

He sat forward again, and his eyes seeming sharper in the new artificial light that coursed in from the front.

"How about," he suggested and she didn't like the edge to his voice, "you tell us everything we want to know, you then stand trial for being the co-conspirator you have been for ten years. Ignorance and putting your fingers in your ears not being any excuse." She opened her mouth, but he continued. "And then we make sure your brother, Ulfur, gets to go home."

She shut her mouth. Damn him.

He watched her as the craft set down, shaking them all slightly.

Why should she protect Ulfur after all he had done to her? Why should he get to go home and she never would? Despite her best efforts, a deep old guilt over Ulfur still lingered. He was a grown man, but he had been young too when they had had to flee, and it hadn't been his fault any more than it had been hers. He had made more than enough mistakes to last a lifetime since, but her own guilt had still simmered away.

She looked away from the Elite to see the small bay outside the craft.

Damn her and her honour. Why could she not have been like the rest of her people?

Outside, she saw several other Elite across the bay as the craft's engines shut down. She was on an Elite ship – she had no chance of escape. Nowhere to run.

All she could do was work this situation as best she could and find a way to escape later. Hopefully.

Her freedom stolen from her again.

Damn Ulfur.

She looked back to the Elite. "And the death penalty?"

"I doubt it would ever stick in your case, even on Rosenthal," Robiah put in, but she kept her eyes on the Elite. Rosenthal were known to be furiously angry over the assassination of their High Councillor Garthew, and they had publically executed his assassin, and apparently had done the same to one other conspirator they had found. They would want to kill her too. For the show if for no other reason.

"No death penalty and I will not give you Creass' location," she pushed.

The hatch began to open to her right and she sensed a presence in the opening, but she didn't look round. She kept her gaze locked with the Elite with scars that she suspected were far worse than her own inner ones.

"No death penalty," he finally replied, "and Ulfur goes home."

He hadn't said anything about Creass, but she knew she had all she would from him. He stood up sharply, appearing angrier than before, and headed straight for the hatch, disappearing out of view.

She looked back to Robiah, who looked at her with raised eyebrows and a nod. "Well played, Seeal."

She opened her mouth to tell him exactly what she thought of him, but a large hand reached into the craft through the hatch and she was 'assisted' out into the Elite bay and lost her opportunity to deliver her cursing words to Robiah.

She would save them for later.

00000  
TBC


	9. Interrogation

**Chapter 9 - Interrogation**

Halling drew in the familiar scented air of the Sythus around him. He wasn't entirely sure what the scent was and its origin – perhaps it was due to the fact that the oxygen was produced and purified through the hydroponics bay of the ship. Maybe the natural process of the trees and plants in the massive bay added something to the air that made it smell so good to his nose.

It might also be the contrast to the docks on Aldine that had filled his nose with the scent of damp wood and rotting fish, or that he had spent so much time away from the Sythus of late, but he felt a real rush of satisfaction to be once more walking through its corridors.

He had remained with Oneakka and Robiah with the captive Seeal through her initial escort to security and through the first level of scans. Two female security staff had removed Seeal's hairpins, belt, wrist timepiece, and her boots. There had been a set of lock picks in one boot heel and a foldable blade in the other. After two passes through the scanners, Oneakka had still refused to let her boots be returned to her, and security had supplied a pair of basic military boots in her size instead. Halling had been surprised at her shoe size, but then she was a tall lean woman, and they often could have larger feet than expected. They had looked like normal enough female feet as she had stood, defiant and for the first time entirely silent, as the security guards had scanned her belt, which had revealed two concealed tiny components. Oneakka had pocketed them – he was good at cobbled together technology himself and would be able to work out what they were easily enough. The belt had not been returned to her either, since the buckle and its pin had clearly been sharpened into potential weapons. She had complained at that point that she needed something to keep her trousers up, but from what Halling had seen the trousers she wore fit her very securely, so the belt had not been used for its main function.

The security staff had then moved on to her clothing, at which point Halling had left. Oneakka had remained in the room, with his back turned to the women, after having shoved Robiah out of the room after Halling. It was clear that Oneakka wasn't going to let Seeal out of his sight until she was passed over to the Rosenthal authorities once all this was over.

Halling was still a little surprised that Oneakka had agreed to her demanding terms that the Elite ensure that she would not be put to death on the Rosenthal. Rosenthal was a militaristic world, and had already beheaded the assassin who had killed their High Councillor, Garthew. It had been a public display and most of the planet had turned out to watch it on the large public screens. If news got out that a new possible conspirator had been captured, it was likely that the Rosenthalians would indeed make a public display of her.

Even if they didn't kill her, they would likely still make a big spectacle of her trial and the altered punishment she would receive, which he suspected would be life imprisonment in a cell with no windows to the outside, except perhaps occasionally she would be put on show for the populace to throw things at her. It was how they usually treated the worse of their criminals – the ones they didn't put to death.

Halling wasn't sure which punishment he would choose in her place, but then, as Oneakka continued to insist, she would take any opportunity to escape. Oneakka appeared to have taken it upon himself to make sure she did not indeed escape before they passed her over to Rosenthal. Hopefully it would be soon, because this whole issue needed to be resolved as quickly as possible. But, for now, whilst security scanned all Seeal's clothes and checked very seam by hand, Halling had a little time to check in with the others and have some food.

He stepped through the doorway into the Central Station and found that everyone else was already here. Which, surprisingly, included Teyla and Kari.

He moved around to join the gathering, stepping into place next to Kari. "So you have finally escaped your babysitting duties?" He asked her in a low voice, for Seifer and Si were discussing fuel requirements.

Kari gave him one of her unusual smiles. "I am _never_ going back there again," she stated firmed.

Halling smiled, understanding how she felt, and more so since she was not a woman to handle fools well, and there had been many in that auditorium. "Have the talks been disbanded?" He asked.

"No, we have left four others there in our stead, for there was Quantum found in Atlantis."

"What?" Halling asked sharply and the word drew everyone else's attention.

"The Sunkara ambassador's assistant smuggled it into the city and traded it to some of the displaced people living there," Teyla reported, her gaze meeting his directly, with no sign that he could see that she was still angry with him.

"Has the assistant supplied any information?" He asked.

"He willingly talked, but had nothing useful so far, so Nalla and Madesh have travelled to Atlantis to see if they can draw anything more useful from him," Jobrill replied.

Halling nodded with a deep frown. This was worrying. "I imagine it did not help progress the treaty negotiations along any faster."

"No, especially as we had to search every Alliance person and room to find the small amount we did," Teyla replied.

"Atlantis personnel searched the rest," Kari added, with just a touch to her tone to imply she thought it relevant.

Teyla blinked and looked away. "We are fully analysing the samples now, but they are definitely not the new generation of Quantum."

"That is some good news at least," Halling muttered.

"As is your successful capture of Creass' bodyguard," Si stated from across the group, his massive dark muscular arms crossed over his chest.

"She says she was the security lead of Dreamstation," Halling found himself correcting, "and knows little of the actual criminal dealings that Creass and those on the station engaged in."

"That is unlikely," Seifer replied, his spiky blond hair shining in the glow of the display screens. Halling noticed he had put in a blaze of blue just above his left ear. He was always one who seemed to feel the need to stylise his armour and dress unusually.

"I agree, but she has agreed to supply us with answers to our questions," Halling informed them, "as long as we keep to the agreement that she will not be given the death penalty on Rosenthal."

Various frowns and surprised expressions spread around the glow of the screens.

"They will not be pleased with such an arrangement," Teyla noted.

"And one we shouldn't be making," Seifer put in.

"Judging from the small amount of useful information supplied by Robiah on this woman, and from having dealt with her directly, I suspect that she could withhold information for quite some time before breaking. We do not have such time," Halling advised.

"Can we trust that she will give us viable information quickly enough even with this agreement?" Jobrill asked.

Halling sighed. "For now she is our only direct lead to this supplier, Khor. Other than Robiah's other, as yet, unnamed source."

"He is trouble," Si stated.

Halling nodded. "And it seems, not a man of his word. He apparently has sent Seeal's brother, Ulfur, back into the field as an informant, when he had agreed with her that Ulfur would be sent home."

"None of which was mentioned in Robiah's file," Kari uttered angrily as she jabbed at the screen which presumably displayed the thin information on Seeal that Robiah had supplied them. It had been filled with accounts of her schemes and murders on Dreamstation. Most of it was likely myth, built up by her strong hand on law in the station, and from the little Halling had heard from her, he suspected she worked from her own code of honour, as some criminals did. It did not make them less dangerous or villainous; it just allowed them to morally justify what they did.

"He is clearly withholding a lot of information from us," Halling concluded. "There is no mention for example as to where this 'home' is he had promised to return Ulfur. There is nothing about the siblings' origin or early career prior to Seeal's appearance on Dreamstation. There is not even an image of the brother."

"I suggest we interrogate Robiah as well," Kari stated.

"I agree," Seifer put in.

"Or," Halling suggested, "we keep him in the room when we interrogate Seeal."

"That would make it harder to verify their stories if they are not told separately," Jobrill noted. It was not common practice for interrogations to keep two suspects together in one room.

Halling nodded, but still replied, "Time is against us. Every moment we delay, this new Quantum is spreading, and I suspect that Robiah has been well trained on withstanding interrogation techniques. However, he clearly finds both Oneakka and Seeal difficult to handle."

"Unsurprising," Kari uttered.

"I suspect he will supply more information for us inadvertently if he believes he is not being studied as well," Halling concluded.

Silence surrounded the group, whilst behind Halling, the normal gentle sounds of the Central Station continued - people moving around, the tapping of fingers on controls, and the usual verbal reports. Sythus was still in orbit over Aldine, for they did not know where to travel next. Hopefully that would change soon.

"Oneakka will know what to draw from him," Seifer said.

"Is Oneakka the best one to lead the interrogation?" Jobrill asked.

"No one is going to get him to stop watch over Seeal," Halling put in, "he is determined to keep what it took him so long to hunt down. At least until she is handed over to Rosenthal."

"Perhaps it would be best if several of us lead the interrogation on the matter of Khor and his Quantum," Teyla suggested. "I suspect a woman of Seeal's history would not appreciate being the focus of so much attention."

Halling nodded. "Possibly, but I have to admit, she is not what I had expected."

Teyla frowned questioningly at him.

Across the table, Si reached out and triggered one small display and the live feed from the main interrogation room was displayed. Seeal was being sat down in the chair set in the centre of the room.

Si scoffed. "This is the fearsome female warrior that bested Oneakka?"

Halling had to admit, Seeal didn't look all that dangerous in her replacement chunky military boots and her long black hair loose around her shoulders, now that the band and pins had been removed.

"I would remind you, Si," Teyla replied, "that it is never wise to underestimate a female warrior, regardless of her size."

The others laughed good-naturedly at her personal point. Teyla was not the tallest of women, but she was one of the very best Elite fighters. She could hold her own against Si and Oneakka, who Halling considered the other most dangerous Elite alive.

Si nodded in acknowledgment of Teyla's point, a soft smile on his dark handsome face.

Halling returned his attention to the small screen that showed Seeal sat in a pool of light, Oneakka's large shoulder and arm just in view to the side, stood just behind her, out of her direct view, working his usual intimidating presence.

"She also bargained for her brother's freedom from Robiah, to be returned to his home, despite what Robiah said about there being absolutely no love between the siblings," Halling said thoughtfully. "In my experience, criminals of her league, rarely trade away their own freedom for another. She has some form of moral code and we can use that. She clearly had no respect for those who used Dreamstation."

There was a buzz from the communications link and Oneakka's voice came through the speaker on the wall, whilst on the live feed on the screen, he was glaring up at the camera. "We're wasting time," he stated.

"I will help to lead the interrogation," Teyla offered looking up from the screen filled with Oneakka's impatient angry face.

"I will accompany you," Si put in.

Halling almost felt sorry for Seeal with both those two plus Oneakka interrogating her.

Almost.

00000

It was a sad fact for Teyla that she had many times in her career had to interrogate fellow humans.

She was exceptionally skilled at removing information directly from a male Wraith's mind, using her developed Seeker gift and utilising their own genetic weakness of obedience towards a powerful female mind. To them, as she entered their minds, she became a 'Queen', an enemy one for sure, but still endowed with that mantle. It was an exceptionally useful skill, but not so effective with the Queens. That took more of a fight, a war of minds once the Queen became aware of the mental invasion. The trick was to slip into a Queen's mind slick and fast, to wander through the thoughts as they flowed as quickly as possible. It was then a battle of wills, which Teyla had never been able to maintain for more than five to ten minutes at the very most, but that was usually all that was necessary during a physical battle. It gave her, or her fellow Elite, the moment necessary to strike down the Queen.

It was different with humans, but not overtly so. There was either easily acquired information gained from just her threatening presence as an Elite warrior, upon which the person projected their own fearful predictions of what an Elite might do to them, or it was a battle of wills.

Teyla was unsure on entering the interrogation room which would work with Seeal. She clearly was not one to bow to intimidation, but she was also unlikely to respond positively to threats. After ten years of working security on Dreamstation, where some of the galaxy's most vile, dangerous and powerful criminals had felt safe and in control, Teyla suspected that Seeal had come up against almost everything.

She wondered what circumstances had forged Seeal to be such a woman to put herself in such a position.

They had met once before, though briefly, on Dreamstation several months ago. It had been a short trip and Teyla had been almost entirely focused on Creass and the mission, leaving the others to watch Seeal as a potential threat.

Teyla remembered her as a tall, slim, darkly dressed woman who had seemed separate, almost detached from the world around her. She had kept silent and had merely watched them as they had walked through the twisted corridors of Dreamstation.

Now she was not on her own territory, she was captured and would likely spend the rest of her life in a jail cell on Rosenthal. It would be likely that she would be publically shamed on the Rosenthal public holidays, where she and other high level criminals would be put on show, with people allowed to throw insults and rotten food at them.

It was certainly a fall from her elevated position as Creass' security lead.

Teyla felt no sympathy for the woman though, for she had stood by and watched as Iketani had planned to kill Teyla's family along with Charin and another High Councillor of the Alliance. Only one assassination had been successful, but only just. If John had not been there...

That thought still haunted Teyla when she lay in bed at night, sleep kept away by the imagined pains of losing Father, Zabetha and Charin. She did not know what she would have done. What it would have done to her.

It would be right that all those that had been involved in such treachery be made to suffer and haunted the rest of their lives.

Yet, before Seeal's punishment was to begin, she had a wealth of information that they could use, and which, if Halling had interpreted her correctly, she appeared now willing to provide.

Teyla was not so sure.

So it was with suspicion, and yet with some small amount of hope, that she moved around the side of the small interrogation room and took in the woman sat in the room's single light source.

Seeal's dark clothes had been returned to her, now cleared of any hidden surprises she might have been carrying. Her boots had not been returned though, and so she wore heavy military boots that looked out of place and almost comical on the tall slim woman.

Her black hair hung loose, falling down to the middle of her back, and it was the darkest shade Teyla had ever seen before. It seemed to absorb the light cast down over her from the spotlight set above her chair. She had pushed most of the long strands back over her shoulders, trying to keep her peripheral vision as unobstructed as possible, which was why her hair bands had not been returned to her yet.

Her skin was an average middle tone, and she had medium brown eyes, which were currently focused ahead, not looking at anything in particular.

Si, having entered and moved around the other side of Seeal, now moved to stand in front of her, and the woman's dark eyes lifted up to him. Teyla watched her gaze swing up Si, clearly taking note of each weapon and tattoo. There was no hint of being intimidated or eager to provide her information; there was instead a stillness that was very informative in itself.

She gave nothing away in her expression, body language, or breathing pattern. She was almost like a blank canvas, or that was what she wanted them to see at least.

She was a perfect example of studied control and confidence.

Yet, there was plenty to read about her.

Her stillness and confident silence in the face of Elite warriors told Teyla that Seeal was not in the least overwhelmed by size or apparent superior strength, which was unusual, especially so in a woman. Oneakka's report on his battle with her on Belsa had not included much in the way of detail, but he had stressed that Seeal had used quick small unexpected fighting moves, using speed and short bursts of violence to overwhelm her opponent. She had fought dirty, as the saying went, using strikes to the face, eyes and groin, and had used a handful of literal dirt to blind Oneakka during their fight. They were all indications that Seeal had learnt to fight in the hardest of ways – that she had learnt young and likely on the street of some non-Alliance world. Which would also explain her confidence and clear experience in dealing with dangerous people.

Teyla wondered how many over the years had thought Seeal a weak and easily defeated prey. She suspected few of them had walked away from the confrontation intact.

As she moved around to Seeal's front, Teyla took in the woman's face, taking in more details. There was small scar on her chin, and others just visible through both her eyebrows and perhaps another tiny one on her left cheek. They were small, well healed, and only the direct strong overhead spotlight highlighted them so noticeably.

She had unusual features, Teyla noted. Wide high cheekbones, a high forehead and strong chin, which when combined with her wide shoulders and sleekly toned arms created the clear picture of a warrior. An unusual one, but one nonetheless. She was a fighter, a predator of a different sort to Elite and the military, but she was dangerous.

Teyla did not doubt that Seeal would take any opportunity to escape from her imprisonment. It would not be in her nature to give in, to surrender. Which would make her presence here all the more irritating to Seeal.

Teyla stopped beside Si, both facing Seeal, both in silent study of their prisoner.

Seeal looked back up at them directly, watching them in turn, taking in details just as quickly no doubt. Teyla found herself wondering what this type of woman would think about her.

"What do you know of Khor?" Si asked, blunt and to the point.

Seeal's eyes slid to Si, and then to the far corner of the room where Robiah was sat, silent and watchful.

"He will have already told you what I know," she replied, her tone not challenging, but rather bored, which surprised and annoyed Teyla a little.

"And now you will tell us, including all that you did not tell Investigator Robiah," Teyla told her.

Seeal took a fraction longer to reply than was necessary, which Teyla suspected was a small form of defiance.

"He is a Quantum supplier, having apparently been responsible for the last two generations of the drug. He is currently employed in network discussions with Creass."

Oneakka shifted in his position leant against the side wall, stood just back from Seeal so that she couldn't quite see him in her hair obstructed peripheral vision.

"Networking meaning setting up dealers," he intoned with an impatient tone and inflection that was a warning to Seeal to speak plainly in her answers.

Seeal didn't look round at him, didn't react at all.

"Creass wishes to establish dealing networks for Khor," Seeal repeated with the clarity Oneakka had demanded, but her words had been directed up to Teyla.

"Did he work with Creass before you left Dreamstation?" Teyla asked.

"No, only in the last month or so has he approached Creass," Seeal replied. "And only through a third party in his communications."

"Kolya?" Robiah asked from his corner.

Teyla ignored him, but his point raised a torrent of emotions for her. Kolya who had seen fit to send an assassin to sneak into John's bedroom in the middle of the night to kill John whilst he was defenceless. The anger burned in her throat for a moment before she regained control of it.

"The Genii ex-commander," Teyla clarified and Seeal nodded, but her eyes narrowed slightly, as if she might have seen something in Teyla's reaction. "Can we trace his communications with Khor?"

"I have already tried," Seeal replied. "Kolya himself uses his own third party communications system, namely other excommunicated Genii."

"And where are they based?"

"I don't know," Seeal replied. "I've heard rumours that Kolya moves his operation constantly and that he takes his small growing army of disillusioned Genii with him. Apparently he doesn't employ anyone but Genii. He doesn't trust anyone else."

"Why does he work with Khor?" Si asked. "Does Kolya use Quantum?"

"No, not that I've ever heard," Seeal replied. "But, he has seemed to have taken an interest in assisting Quantum dealers, especially into Genii space."

"Why? Teyla asked.

Seeal gave the tiniest of mocking smiles. "Because if Quantum, and perhaps other illicit substances, causes difficulties for the current Genii leaders, and Kolya does one day claim power of the Genii Confederation for himself, then he can almost overnight destroy all the dealers and suppliers, thereby singlehandedly cleaning up the Genii worlds."

Teyla frowned. "Is Quantum a problem on the Genii worlds?"

"A growing one," Seeal replied. "With resistance to Cowan's rule growing, all that he has labelled as banned has taken on a whole new appeal."

"And these banned goods passed through Dreamstation?" Teyla asked, though knew the answer.

"I never looked in any holds of the ships docked at the station," Seeal replied.

"Thereby giving you plausible deniability?" Si asked.

Seeal shrugged slightly. "It was not my business to know and I wanted nothing to do with anything that might have been on those ships."

"How convenient," Oneakka muttered from the shadows at the side of the room.

"Did Khor _ever_ visit Dreamstation?" Teyla asked, pulling them back on track.

"No," Seeal replied. "Not that I ever saw. In fact, as far as I have been able to discover, no one knew of Khor until a few months back. Few have ever even seen him, and no one knows where he is based. There are some rumours of him keeping his Quantum manufacture moving to evade detection, and that he moves outwards in Alliance territory as the Military pushes out the borders."

Teyla had heard the dismissive tone in Seeal's rendition of the rumours. "You do not believe that is true?"

Seeal shook her head. "Why move an illegal operation into areas in which the Military are still operational? And Quantum, as far as my understanding of the production goes, requires a lot of processing, and perfectly purified water as its base. Such equipment is not easily transported."

"It could be on a ship," Oneakka suggested.

Seeal's eyes slid in Oneakka's general direction, but she did not move her head. "Possibly, but the logistics of carrying so much water between worlds would be immense, and surely someone on one world would notice a ship retrieving water into its hold."

"Not if it's an uninhabited world," Oneakka argued.

Seeal finally turned her head towards him slightly, though she did not look round at him directly. "The water has to heavily processed. If he was on a ship, he would have to frequently collect new water. No, safer to base your manufacture in one or two places, near natural water sources."

Oneakka didn't respond, though Teyla saw him shrug dismissively despite seemingly to agree with her argument, as Teyla did.

"Tell us about Khor," Teyla asked, "What planet is he from?"

Seeal frowned for the first time. "No one knows. He speaks little, has a very basic simple accent that I have not been able to identify, and he dresses in the same clothes each time he has met with Creass. Simple leather trousers and waistcoat over plain shirt, which could be manufactured on any world, in or out of the Alliance. He is tall, but not too strongly built. He carries nothing personal with him, has no decoration of any kind on anything he wears, and only carries one weapon, a stunner. He is always accompanied by his assistant, who is dressed identically, says nothing, and is only slightly shorter. He too has no outward clues as to his origins, but I would say they are from the same planet, perhaps even related, due to some facial similarities."

Teyla took all that in, including the faint lift of Seeal's upper lip which implied distaste – she did not like Khor.

"What kind of man is he?" Teyla asked, since there was so little to use so far.

Seeal narrowed her eyes as she looked aside, a frown appearing above her nose again, and her eyes moved slightly, which were all signs that she was properly accessing her memories and not fabricating lies.

"He is contained, unemotional, speaks only when he absolutely needs to and when he does it is with overly efficient short sentences. He makes no small talk with Creass when he arrives and leaves, but I am never close enough to hear them talking when they discuss business. However, I have observed no new behaviour during those talks. He sits as if he were unaffected by anything, and responds as if he has to but does not wish to."

"Has he ever mentioned another planet, or other people?" Teyla asked, feeling the first tinges of frustration growing.

"No, never," Seeal replied. "He is a very unusual man and one that I distrusted from the first moment I saw him."

Teyla nodded, understanding why, considering all that Seeal had described.

"Could he be a middle man himself?" Robiah asked.

Seeal looked at him briefly, seemingly surprised by the question. "I suppose he could be, but he does seem very technically aware of his product, from the occasional words I have overheard."

"You have no ideas, no clues as to where he can be found?" Si demanded.

Seeal looked directly up at him. "No," she replied simply, almost enjoying the word.

Si shifted forward slightly, the first attempt at physical intimidation he had used. "Then what good are you to us?" He stated, tone disparaging.

"None," Seeal replied with a smiling shrug. "It is hardly worth keeping me prisoner at all."

Teyla rolled her eyes slightly at that as Si turned to her, his arms crossed and his attention moved entirely away from Seeal. Teyla saw Seeal's eyes lower onto the stunner sat on Si' closest hip, less than an arm's reach away from her. In an expanded moment, Teyla watched to see what Seeal would do, but the moment was broken by Oneakka lifting his shoulder from the wall. The softest of sounds of his moving, his body armour moving faintly, the brush of his skin as he uncrossed his arms, and the movement of air around him, was all that any of them needed to understand Oneakka's warning to Seeal.

Seeal glanced in Oneakka's direction out the corner of his eyes, a bitter expression on her face.

Teyla turned her full attention to Si, aware that he had known his weapon would be a temptation to the prisoner, but he had known nothing could happen. It had been a test or challenge of Seeal. Si liked to test people's characters in such ways. Teyla remembered how he had tested John literately in sparring, on two occasions. It had been an amusing sparring match to observe both times, and they had served to endear John to Si somewhat.

She suspected, looking up at her friend and colleague, that like Halling he must have his theories about her extended time on Tjaru and with those from Earth. He likely knew about her and John, but had said absolutely nothing of what he thought or had given any indication that he knew. Si was that way; he would never interfere in her life, not even for the best of reasons. She looked up at his handsome dark face now and felt a rush of the affectionate friendship she had felt for him for so many years. He was a strong man in every way, physically, emotionally and almost spiritually. Out of all of her closest fellow Elite, he had always been the calmest and wisest. He did not speak often, but when he did, they were always words she trusted and valued. He was a Seeker like her, and Athosian, so the bond between them had been strong from the first time they had met in the Elite training facility. He had been wise and patient even in his youth, and time had only matured all his skills.

"She is no use to us," he stated.

It was a simple summary of the situation, but also likely designed to get a reaction from Seeal.

"And no doubt I should just be thrown straight into a cell and sent to Rosenthal," Seeal mocked, reacting immediately, but not quite as Teyla had expected. "I had expected more from an Elite interrogation."

Si looked round and down at her. "I am stating a fact. You can provide us all we need on Dreamstation from the Rosenthal prison just as well as you can here."

Seeal sighed. "You would prefer I make up something so that you might allow me a few more precious hours out of Rosenthal's hands? That's hardly the best interrogation technique. I will have more opportunities to escape on Rosenthal, than I can stuck here on this ship."

Oneakka moved forward, suddenly a full presence in the room again. "She stays on this ship until I get every piece of information out of her," he insisted angrily. "She'll only drag out giving information on Rosenthal and use it to manipulate her way to an escape. She'll tell us everything _here_."

Teyla looked over her shoulder to Oneakka, seeing the prowling anger and determination that, though usual for him, was very strong on this matter. Halling had been right that Oneakka intended to control Seeal's capture until she was handed over.

"We have to focus on the current matter, and she has nothing for us," Teyla told him.

Seeal sighed loudly. "Really? _This_ is your best interrogation technique?"

"_I'm_ deadly serious," Oneakka insisted to Teyla and Si, ignoring Seeal. "We get everything we need first, not hand her over to Rosenthal beforehand."

Teyla glanced at Si and back to Oneakka. "Very well, she will stay here until after we have sorted this other matter, leaving her with absolutely no opportunity to escape for some time," she clarified the situation for Seeal. "It would therefore be in your interests to help us locate Khor as quickly as possible."

Seeal looked away with a frown, only for her gaze to fall on Robiah and she frowned deeper with distaste and looked away from him. Her dark eyes lifted up to Teyla and Si, but her expression had become thoughtful.

"If _I_ wanted to find Khor, and I had all the power and reach of the Elite," she added, thereby making a subtle insult that they could not work out what she had, "then I would go to Khor's biggest competitors."

Teyla and Si both turned back to face her again. "Quantum suppliers?" Teyla checked.

Seeal nodded. "Of everyone in the galaxy, they will have the best contacts in the Quantum world and will have the most to gain from finding out Khor's secrets. And if sharing such information with the Elite might lead to Khor being removed from the supplying business, then all the better for them."

Teyla nodded with the logic. "So, who are the biggest players in Quantum?"

Seeal smiled, clearly enjoying the moment for some reason. "The three biggest suppliers in the entire Alliance are all based on Sunkara."

All of Teyla's senses sharpened. Sunkara. The planet from which the dealer in Atlantis originated. "Why on Sunkara?"

Seeal angled her head slightly, implying some amusement in the fact that they did not know the answer. "Because of the water."

Teyla frowned, recalling instantly from her own extensive knowledge of the Alliance worlds that there was nothing special recorded about the water on Sunkara, if anything it was frequently dirty and needed to be purified to be safe for the population to...

"Most of the water on Sunkara has to be purified," Teyla realised and Seeal nodded. "So they have the best source of purified water and are a powerful market world with vast opportunities for trade through the Portal," she considered with a glance to Si, and Robiah beyond him. Robiah looked as surprised as Teyla had been.

"The suppliers," Si asked, "do they siphon off what they need from the purification works, or do they purchase it from the water purification companies directly?"

Another look of faint amusement passed over Seeal's features as she leant forward a fraction, her voice lowering. "The suppliers _are_ the water purification companies."

Teyla felt a jolt at hearing that. The water purification companies on Sunkara were well established, respected companies and often owned by local government figures on Sunkara. They not only provided safe water for everyone, filled irrigation canals, and kept the local environment as clean as possible, they also provided vast numbers of jobs for local peoples. They had been a vital part of the Sunkaran way of life for a long time. They had been first formed by groups of farmers who had worked together to buy basic purification systems from off world, and been so successful that the technology had spread quickly across the planet. The purified water had transformed Sunkara, improving life for everyone, halting the previously devastating spread of water-borne diseases, and had allowed the population to flourish. The purification groups had become more established and, once Sunkara had joined the Alliance, the technological advancement of their purification techniques had advanced as quickly as their growing trade links. They had formed into vital, powerful companies, respected throughout their world and others. Athos had traded with them for more years than Teyla had lived. It was quite shocking to think they were behind most of the Quantum being manufactured.

Seeal had obviously seen some of that surprise. "They control the most advanced water purification systems in the entire galaxy, they have unlimited access to any tradable goods onto and off Sunkara. They need only dedicate a small part of their works to the production of Quantum and no one outside those small number of workers know what they are making. They ship the product out with their water bottles and filter systems they trade to other worlds. They have become some of the richest organisations in the Alliance, and they have only expanded their wealth through Quantum, doing so completely undetected by the Alliance Investigation Division and Enforcement."

"We have a dealer from Sunkara currently in custody," Teyla mentioned.

"And did you for even a second consider the Quantum was actually being produced on such grand scale on Sunkara itself?" Seeal asked. "The dealer you have will most likely have no idea himself where his product came from. He, like you, would have assumed it was just traded in through the markets, brought in from off world. If anyone on Sunkara might have produced it, then you would have looked for small manufacturing sites, not at the massive water companies."

"We have only your word on this," Si stated, his arms still crossed.

"True, but if you want to find Khor, then you should approach the president of the most powerful water purification company. His reaction will be your proof."

Teyla considered the idea. It would be easy enough to travel to Sunkara, perhaps using the incident on Atlantis as official reason enough. She turned to Si. "The dealer we have, we need his details and story from Nalla," she said quietly, and Si was already nodding.

"You have no evidence," Robiah put in from across the room. "I have had some dealings with some of the water companies, related to incidents of contamination into the local water, they are powerful people. They also know the letter of the law."

"Being that many of them write the laws on the planet," Si muttered.

"They will tell _us_ what we wish to know," Teyla stated confidently, eyeing Robiah closely. She predicted his next question.

"I could accompany you, since I have had met many of them, and a face from the Investigation Division might be helpful."

Teyla kept her expression controlled. "That will not be necessary. It will be more in our favour for the Division not to be represented for the meeting."

"They will deny ever hearing Khor's name," Si noted.

Teyla understood his point. They didn't even have a record of what Khor looked like, no captured image from anywhere, and such a picture would have been the best way to open up the 'discussion' with the water company they visited. Except, they did have someone who had seen Khor in person.

Teyla turned to look back down at Seeal. "You will accurately describe Khor's face to a transcriber and help produce an image of his likeness."

Seeal glanced to Si and back to Teyla. "I can show you a picture of him right now," she said almost innocently. "If I can have my wrist timepiece returned to me," she added looking off to the left, for the first time looking directly towards Oneakka.

Teyla frowned. They had searched and scanned everything she wore. Had they missed something in the timepiece?

Oneakka stepped forward from the shadows, the wrist timepiece retrieved from somewhere. He turned the device over in his hands.

"It was scanned?" Teyla asked, slightly worried that their scanners were not functioning properly.

"Completely," Oneakka replied, but his attention was fixed on the device, turning it over in his dextrous fingers. He lifted it higher and frowned.

"If I could have it back I could-" Seeal began, but Oneakka cut her off with a heavy threatening stare. Seeal stopped talking, but rolled her eyes as she looked away.

Oneakka's other hand disappeared behind his back and reappeared with a knife Teyla had not seen before. It was long and slim, with a smooth wooden handle. It was too slim for Oneakka to use regularly and had the shape of one designed to be easy concealed. Such as in a boot. This would be Seeal's knife he had taken off her. Teyla almost smiled as she watched Oneakka use Seeal's own knife to dig into the small seal around the base of the timepiece, where the battery compartment attached. It came apart and Oneakka held it up. Teyla stepped up close and saw what was inside. There was a tiny piece of data-plastic lying over the battery inside. The plastic would not have come up as unusual in the scans for it would have appeared to have been part of the timepiece's innards. Teyla carefully picked up one corner of the small flimsy material to see that it was etched with tiny details. She peered closely.

"A direct scan of the image of Khor," Seeal reported, "Along with the data of his and Kolya's last three communications."

Teyla held up the tiny square of data-plastic and saw a tiny image in one corner that, once digitally enlarged, would likely be a face, and there lines beside it, presumably text.

She looked back to Seeal. "Is there anything else you are carrying?"

Seeal shook her head. "I believe your people found everything else," she replied.

Teyla wasn't able to tell if she was being completely truthful.

It did not matter though, for Oneakka would watch her closely enough.

Teyla turned to him and Si. "I suggest we look at this image, confer with Nalla via the Portal, and then visit a water company."

000000  
TBC


	10. Confessions

**Chapter 10 – Confessions**

The dark gloom of the brig felt thick and heavy against the strange glowing light of the Ancient cell's force-field. The Sunkaran drug dealer, sat on the lone dark bench set at the centre of the cell, looked up as John entered, the alien light making him look pale and ill.

He had been well behaved so far, having apparently told Teyla and Halling everything he knew, understanding that he was in a massive heap of trouble. Problem was the guy didn't realise how truly important what he knew could now be in the face of the new worrying Wraith-altered Quantum. So, the Elite had sent in their best 'readers' – the purple-skinned Pelydrian Elite warrior called Nalla, and Madesh, the reformed criminal who had been tricked by Iketani into helping her kidnap Carson last year. Madesh had his own superpower at reading people that John didn't quite understand. Teyla had said it had something to do with looking into someone's eyes and seeing their soul. John had laughed at the idea when she had described it that way, but at her frown, had quickly turned it into a flirting comment as to whether she could see his soul in his eyes. Madesh's soul-reading aside, Nalla's skills were proven and John trusted her, but he couldn't help feeling uncomfortable around her, especially when his mind wandered onto thoughts about Teyla

Which had just happened and Nalla was stood a few metres behind him, sensing all the emotions around her. John quickly forced himself to focus on the job at hand. Which was to set a certain atmosphere for Nalla and Madesh's interrogation of the drug-dealer.

John stopped a few metres from the front of the occupied cell and gestured the two watching guards out of the room. The two Marines didn't question his silent order for a second, which surprised him a little, and simply filed past him to the corridor outside. In the centre of the cell, the drug dealer sat up taller, nervously watching the room empty.

John waited an extra beat and then stepped aside, allowing the dealer to see Nalla stood in the doorway behind him.

Nalla strode forward, the epitome of a cool, silent and proud Elite warrior, sliding fluidly through the brig's subdued lighting. She had slid several of her long knives through the front of her belt so that the shiny bare metal glinted brightly in the low light, and her purple skin tone cast her in dramatic deep shadows as she moved slowly towards the imprisoned Sunkaran.

The guy had all but wet himself the first instant she appeared.

As Nalla neared the cell, John triggered it open, the force-field shutting down and lowering the room's light level even further as Nalla continued her predator-like slow advance into the cell.

The Sunkaran slipped from the bench to the floor, cowering on his knees, his hands clutched tightly together as he stared at Nalla's shiny knives.

After spending so much time with the Elite, John forgot how intimidating the warriors were to the average Alliance civilian. They were living legends, mysterious and fear-provoking as much as they were respected and exalted for their courage and skill. Teyla had told him that some people actually believed that they ate the Wraith they killed so as to absorb their heightened strength and agility, and that they would kill anything who got in their way, human or Wraith. And clearly the cowering Sunkaran currently believed the very worst of the stories he had heard.

Nalla drew to a halt in the middle of the cell, towering over the man, who was literally shaking, his lips quivering with words he either didn't want to risk saying or couldn't actually get out.

In the doorway to the cell, Madesh stepped up next to John. The last time John had seen the man he had been a nervous skinny guy, recovering from a bullet wound and afraid for his own future. Now, his face and body had fleshed out, and he looked well fed and focused. His jacket looked tight around his upper body too, implying to John that Madesh had been put through some Elite sparring sessions to build up his strength. John remembered how a 'friendly' sparring session with an Elite had felt – it had been like sparring with an Olympic athlete who had been barely pulling their punches. For a sharp second, John felt something like envy slide through his belly as he took in Madesh's transformation, but he pushed it away quickly.

Madesh, sensing John's attention, glanced round and smiled. John nodded and smiled back, but didn't hold the eye contact, because he might not understand the guy's eye-starring superpower, but he could respect it.

"Hon...honoured...E...Elite," the Sunkaran whimpered from inside the cell. "Please...don't..."

"What is your name?" Nalla asked with a strong yet soft tone.

"Marran," he whispered.

"Marran," Nalla continued, "You told my honoured colleagues that you traded for your supply of Quantum on your homeworld of Sunkara."

Marran nodded. "From a trader, in the market. He has supplied me with only small amounts for years," he replied, his voice wavering anxiously.

"And where does he get his supply?" Nalla demanded.

Marran began to shake his head.

"You do not know exactly," Nalla replied for him, "but you have your suspicions. Rumours you have heard."

Marran glanced aside, his attitude changing slightly.

Nalla stepped up closer to him and his eyes snapped back up to her.

"There is no one you need fear more than the Elite, Marran," she told him.

Marran licked his lips, his mind working away behind his eyes. "I have heard many rumours, but I don't ask questions. Nobody does."

Nalla tilted her head. "Among the Quantum dealers, or on Sunkara?"

Marran licked his lips nervously again.

"On Sunkara," Nalla replied for him, presumably having sensed his answer through his emotions.

Marran rose up slightly on his knees, his hands clasped together, and John dropped his hand to his sidearm. But, Marran wasn't being threatening, he was looking up at Nalla beseechingly.

"I am no one," he told her quickly, his voice growing higher. "I only trade small amounts, for friends mainly. I rarely take it myself. I just get a little money, just a little more to help feed my family. Please, Honoured Elite, I am no one, not worth the stain of my blood on your honoured weapons."

John realised that Marran honestly thought Nalla was here to kill him.

Nalla leant down slightly over Marran. "Do you know anything more of the Quantum?"

Marran shook his head.

She sighed heavily. "Lie."

Marran bit his lip. "I know that others among the Ambassadors' delegations take it," the words bundled out. "I have traded it to many of them on my ambassador's visits to other worlds."

"And all of it you purchased on Sunkara?" Nalla asked, but then immediately nodded as if he had answered out loud. "And what else is there for which you feel so guilty?"

Marran lowered his head. Silence filled the air, as loud and pointed as if Nalla had shouted at him.

"I have been passing it to my mistress as well," Marran uttered.

Nalla stood up straighter once more, towering over Marran. "And?"

"My three mistresses," he amended.

Silence hung again.

Maran lowered his head further. "And my male lover my wife does not know I love."

"Do you believe any of them know more than you about Quantum?" Nalla asked as she glanced over her shoulder towards John and Madesh. In the low light, her strange violet eyes seemed to glow.

Madesh moved forward to join her.

Marran looked up, his body language completed defeated and his eyes sad and desperate. "No. Please, I have loved him for so many years, since we were youths. It is not accepted on Sunkara. Please, he cannot know what I have done."

Nalla didn't answer though, she just stepped away and Madesh took her place in front of Marran. Marran's eyes widened, fearfully nervous again, as he looked up at Madesh.

John glanced at Nalla, who was still working her theatrical scary-woman routine as she watched.

Madesh stepped back after a second. "He doesn't know anymore, he prefers to hide from knowledge. To hide away from things he doesn't want to know. His male lover is probably someone important; he doesn't feel worthy of him."

Nalla nodded as if she had thought the same.

"He is important to _me_," Marran defended, suddenly finding a tone of courage.

"Perhaps a politician, or leader," Madesh considered.

"Please," Marran begged, "he cannot hear of what I have been doing."

Nalla moved forward to stand over Marran again, looking down at him silently.

"It is not our concern to share information from our interrogations, Marran," she told him. "I suggest that once you have been tried and paid your dues through a likely prison sentence, that you begin to be more honest with those you care for."

And with those philosophical words, Nalla turned and strode quickly out of the cell towards the brig's exit, Madesh following behind.

"Thank you for sparing me, Honoured Elite," Marran called out to her retreating back as John triggered the force-field back into place and followed the exiting Elite.

As John entered the corridor outside, Nalla and Madesh were waiting for him. With a nod and gesture, the Marines returned to their posts in the brig, leaving them alone in the corridor.

"He knows nothing of value to the current investigation," Nalla summarised, her attitude all gentle calm efficiency now, as if the frightening scary Elite John had seen in the brig no longer existed. Clearly acting ability was part of being an Elite, though it had thrown John somewhat.

"Any chance this lover of his could be important?" John asked.

"No, there was no evidence of that. Marran is a small time dealer, as he confessed, buying and selling small amounts of Quantum to others for currency. I suspect, despite what he said, that he has never taken the drug himself. There were no associated feelings of delight and anticipation that users normally experience at the mere mention of Quantum."

"He's clearly addicted to having as much action as possible," John muttered. Three mistresses, a wife, and a male lover.

Nalla opened her mouth to answer, but then glanced over John's shoulder, her expression shifting suddenly back to the more scary version of her. John turned to look at the corridor behind him to see what had caused such a reaction, but there was no one there.

Until a moment later when Nolfi appeared around the corner, his own assistant a few paces behind him, and further back two Marines keeping careful watch over the High Councillor.

"Honoured Elite," Nolfi greeted Nalla with an overly exaggerated bow of his head as he approached. John felt his fingers itch to rest on his sidearm, but he restrained himself – it wouldn't be the political thing to do.

"High Councillor," Nalla replied, not nodding or bowing or anything. John liked her even more for that. "Is there something you require?"

Nolfi sighed as he reached them. "Only peace throughout our galaxy, but your Honoured battalion can only do so much for us all."

John wanted to glance at Nalla to see her reaction to that backhanded comment, but he kept his eyes on Nolfi.

"Give us time and opportunity and we will do so," Nalla replied. "There is something you wish to ask."

"I was wondering," Nolfi replied with a tone that was far too precisely pitched between polite and scheming, "why it is that Elite warriors are taking it upon themselves to investigate drug dealing. It does not seem to be a part of your mandate."

The last words had held a touch of threat, as if he was reminding Nalla of her job and his status.

"In this instance, it is," Nalla replied, not apparently thrown by the direct question.

"How so?" Nolfi asked. "Is it because Atlantis has asked you to become involved?" His shrewd little eyes moved to John.

"They are assisting us," Nalla replied, which John almost wanted to object to slightly, but he kept his trap shut, grateful that Nolfi had looked away from him.

"In hunting down Quantum dealers?" Nolfi asked with a deep frown. "In searching through all our belongings all through last night?"

"It was necessary, as was explained to you," Nalla replied, her tone was darkening slightly.

"Yes, Councillor Tyre did explain the situation as relating to security of the Alliance, which is strange considering you searched all the refugees in the city as well. Did one of them wish us harm, Honoured Elite? You can understand why I might be concerned, considering what happened to my predecessor, Garthew."

John tried not to clench his teeth too tightly. "I can assure you that our security is tight here on Atlantis, High Councillor."

"As tight as it was when an assassin slipped into your quarters in the middle of the night, Major Sheppard?" Nolfi asked.

"That was different," John replied as calmly as possible.

"Yes, much seems different here," Nolfi replied.

"High Councillor," Nalla stated, "Please be assured that the Elite are watching over all of our delegation for these talks, you will be safe."

"I do, of course, feel safe under the Elite's protective and powerful eye. I only worry why so many have now been assigned, and why you are taking such an interest in the dealing of drugs." He had moved closer now, meeting Nalla's gaze directly. He didn't seem at all intimidated by her and her Elite status. John glanced at her and then back to Nolfi, suddenly feeling like a third wheel.

"We have become interested in Quantum dealing due to potential Wraith involvement in its production," Nalla explained and John looked quickly at Nolfi' face.

Nolfi frowned. "Wraith?" He seemed honestly confused, but then Nalla had been a good actor and surely that was a skill politicians also needed.

"Yes, Councillor," Nalla replied. "But that is high security information that must be kept contained."

"There is no higher security level that the High Council, Honoured Elite," Nolfi replied, but he was frowning still. "This is most concerning. Are you saying the Sunkaran you have imprisoned is a Wraith worshipper?"

"No, not in the least," Nalla replied, "he appears innocent of the particular generation of Quantum we are investigating."

"But you do have other lines of investigation?" Nolfi asked.

"We do," Nalla replied, nodding clearly, her first proper overt gesture in the entire conversation.

Nolfi licked his lips, still looking worried. "I look forward to a complete report on this matter with great interest. I will not hold you back from your important work, Honoured Elite."

Nalla nodded again. "Thank you, High Councillor."

Nolfi nodded in reply, and then his eyes slid to John.

John decided a vaguely polite nod would be the correct political thing to do. He gave the High Councillor a faint nod.

"Major, Honoured Elite," Nolfi stated as he turned to leave, his eyes moving over them, including Madesh stood just behind John.

They watched the man head away down the corridor. John shared a proper nod with Donovan, who was one of the Marines tasked with watching over Nolfi, before the group disappeared from view.

"He is not a pleasant man," Madesh muttered from over John's shoulder.

Nalla glanced over hers and have Madesh a scowl.

"Apologies, Honoured Elite," Madesh replied immediately.

"He is a member of the High Council and thereby deserving of respect," Nalla intoned as she turned away. "Even if we do not wish it was so," she added more quietly.

"He seemed surprised by the Wraith news," John asked Nalla as they began to head along the corridor, in the opposite direction from Nolfi.

"Yes," Nalla replied, but not giving away any more than that. John guessed that made sense – she wouldn't want to share anything compromising with him. He had just gotten used to Teyla sharing more with him, even if it was only a little more, and had forgotten that the Elite didn't all trust him and Atlantis.

"It is no reflection on you, Major Sheppard," Nalla said and John had to think for a moment if he had actually said any of that out loud. He was pretty sure he hadn't. Nalla smiled at him.

"That superpower must save time," John joked, though it was serious point. If you could tell what everyone around you was feeling from moment to moment, it would be an amazing tool.

"It does," Nalla replied, her soft purple skin glowing in the sunlight cast in through two tall corridor windows. "But, it can also be a hindrance at times as well."

John frowned at that. "Can you sense what Wraith are feeling?" He asked.

"Hunger," Nalla replied instantly, her humour and softness vanished. "Violence. Fear."

John guessed that wasn't a great combination for anyone to have to face, let along actually feel from others. "Must be distracting, in a fight," he asked.

"I have grown used to it, and it can be useful in the flow of a battle," she replied.

John opened his mouth to reply, but his earpiece came alive. "Major Sheppard, this is Colonel Carter, please report to the Control Room with our new guests. We have a call for them from the Elite."

John looked at Nalla. "We're on our way, Colonel."

They made it up to the Control Room in record time by John's reckoning – it seemed Elite walking speed was way faster than his own, and he had a long stride. They hurried up the steps into the busy control room in time to hear Colonel Carter talking.

"...if there is anything we can do to assist let us know."

"Thank you, Colonel Carter, we will keep that in mind," a voice replied through the large computer screen in front of Carter, and John's heart leapt. Teyla.

He hurried around the various Ancient consoles, Nalla at his side, until the screen came into view. Teyla's beautiful proud face filled the screen.

"Hey," John found himself saying stupidly, and he inwardly kicked himself.

"Emmagan," Nalla said, more professionally from his side.

Teyla nodded to them both, and even smiled slightly. "Have you had any success with the Sunkaran dealer?"

"He had little of value," Nalla reported, and John was a little surprised that he and Carter were being allowed to listen to the conversation. "He deals small amounts of Quantum, purchased from a market stall on Sunkara. He knows nothing more, for he has chosen not to listen to anything. He worked only for his own ends. His only contribution was that others of his access level among political figures do indulge in Quantum. I suspect we may be able to get some names from him, perhaps in return for a quiet and shorter sentence."

Teyla nodded. "That may be helpful, but for now he has at least confirmed one small matter – that he purchased the Quantum on Sunkara itself. Our contact here has informed us that Sunkara is one of the most productive worlds when it comes to Quantum."

"Truly?" Nalla asked.

"The Sythus is en route to the planet now, and once there Si and I will speak with someone we believe is working in competition with Khor."

"You think they'll have done their homework on him," John said.

Teyla nodded, her eyes sliding to meet his through the screen. "Our contact suggests that they will have more information than anyone else, and that they will likely be willing enough to share."

"Really?" John asked without thinking again. He was getting too used to speaking frankly with Teyla, and feeling comfortable in Carter and Nalla's presence, he had slipped a bit.

"They will have the most to gain in losing him as a competitor," Nalla replied next to him, and John suddenly remembered that she could read everything he was feeling. Including his reaction to seeing Teyla. Feeling suddenly vulnerable and transparent, John straightened his back.

"You think they'll know about the Wraith involvement?" He asked, more to have something to say to direct everyone's attention, namely Nalla's, away from his previous thought.

"Unlikely," Teyla replied, "But it is not outside the realms of possibility."

"Do you need assistance?" Nalla asked. "I can arrive on Sunkara via its Portal."

Teyla dark beautiful eyes moved to Nalla.

John clamped down on his feelings again quickly. If it was even possible to hide emotions from Nalla at will. He guessed not, having seen how she had interrogated not only Marran, but Breack before.

"We plan to arrive more covertly via transport craft at night," Teyla replied. "Arriving through the Portal will alert those involved far too quickly that we are on Sunkara."

"I agree," Nalla replied.

"It may be best for you to remain on Atlantis," Teyla said. "To assist in the negotiations." There seemed to John to be some hidden subtext in that statement.

"Very well. Madesh and I will stay here, but can be of assistance as required," Nalla replied. John could have sworn he saw Madesh standing taller out the corner of his eye.

"We will contact you as soon as we have something of note," Teyla concluded.

John really wanted to tell her to be careful, but that wouldn't be appropriate right now, and she wouldn't thank him for it.

"Good hunting," Nalla said and Teyla nodded. Her eyes shifted across them in the last moments before the link was cut, and John was almost certain she had looked at him last.

"Be careful," he whispered just under his breath that no one could hear.

000000

Seeal was bored, tired and the chair under her was becoming really uncomfortable. She had been sat in this small room for hours, and had been given only a bowl of rice-meal and a glass of water. The meal had annoyingly filled her quite well, so she hadn't been able to use the need for more food to delay the boring series of questions that hadn't stopped for hours now.

Another photographed face slid across the opposite wall to her – yet another in the long tedious list of criminals the Elite wanted her to name and provide every tiny detail she knew about them.

"I don't know his name," Seeal reported at the new face, "he uses the prostitutes sometimes on Dreamstation. A smuggler, mostly children's toys."

"Toys?!" The stern female Elite asked from where she sat perched on the corner of a table tapping Seeal's answers into an electronic pad. Seeal suspected she was also bored with this endless electronic book of faces, but she was hiding it well. Seeal had stopped bothering to hide her boredom some time ago.

"Small electronic soldier toys made on Litan I think," Seeal sighed.

Maybe if she had another glass of water her bladder would be understandably full enough for her to leave this small room.

"Why smuggle toys?" The female Elite asked, her tone edging on exasperation. "Did he conceal weapons or Quantum inside them?"

"No, just toys. They go for a fortune on some non-Alliance worlds," Seeal replied as she crossed her legs and re-crossed her arms. "Can I have another glass of water?"

"No," Mr Scar Face replied instantly.

He had barely moved in the past hours, which annoyed Seeal immensely. He stood leant against the wall just behind her, his presence silent, unseen, but always pressing upon her. His immediate answer to her request had sounded annoyingly awake and alert.

Seeal sighed and looked round at him. "On most planets it's unlawful to deny someone water."

"We aren't on a planet," he replied, his heavy gaze sliding back to the face on the wall.

Seeal rolled her eyes as she looked away from him. She just wished she was actually thirsty just to be able to argue the point further.

"Are you sure nothing else is smuggled with these toys?" The other Elite asked.

"Not that I know," Seeal replied. She had had to repeat that phrase many times. She could give names, connections, some details of operations, but nothing more. She did not know these criminals in any way other than assessing them as risks entering onto Dreamstation.

"Anything else that you know about this man?" The female Elite asked, as she had done at the end of each single face over the last couple of hours. Surely even Elite had to sleep. Though perhaps not the silent male against the wall.

"No," Seeal replied with a sigh.

A new face appeared on the wall.

"He's dead," Seeal reported.

"How?"

"Killed by another smuggler."

"How long ago?"

"Perhaps a year," Seeal estimated.

The face changed to another one.

"Also dead," Seeal reported. "He killed the last one."

"Who killed this one?" The woman asked.

Seeal paused before answering. "It was his own fault."

"Meaning you killed him," the woman replied.

"He went on a rampage through the lower decks of Dreamstation; said one of the prostitutes had been paid but hadn't done what he wanted. I told him to stand down, but he refused and shot three of my security team before I stopped him."

"His death also caused a major rift between some powerful houses on Malakien," Robiah added from his dark corner of the room. He had been adding his own pieces of information in as he liked, each one an annoyance to Seeal.

"His own fault," Seeal repeated.

"His body was never found," Robiah replied. "I assume it went out a Dreamstation airlock?"

"It might still be orbiting around out there somewhere," Seeal replied.

Robiah looked down at his electronic pad and tapped away on it. "The news of how he actually died will not bring back those who were killed in his name, but it will at least be something for his family."

"He was a violent and sadistic man," Seeal stated, her anger at Robiah finally having an avenue to focus down. His presence in the room itched at her, but she had kept tight control of herself. However, tiredness and boredom were tiring out her restraint with the lying piece of Wraith shit. "You can feel sorry for your political considerations and the inner fighting on his world, but I can promise you there are a lot more happier people alive with him not being here."

Robiah looked up at her. "Does that make it right?" He accused.

"It makes it his own fault," Seeal reiterated. "He was warned, he chose to fight us and the weapons pointed at him."

"And how does that theory work for your own defence, Seeal?" Robiah asked. She suspected he was growing tired as well, which gave Seeal some tiny pleasure. "You knew the type of people there were around you on Dreamstation, yet you worked with them. That was your choice."

"And what of the spies _you_ put in Dreamstation?" Seeal asked. "You knew who was moving through that station and yet you did nothing, someone with far more power and reach than me."

"I have no power outside Alliance territory," Robiah replied with a smug sense of victory, but he had opened the way for her.

"Really?" Seeal asked. "Because you have more than enough spies and small groups of your own working far beyond the Alliance border."

She had the great satisfaction of seeing the brief moment of surprise on Robiah's face before he hid it.

"All I have are people like you were," Robiah lied, "people who made bad choices and therefore have something to hide."

Seeal's temper began to rise at that, the tiredness dulling her control. "I had the best choice I had available. I didn't live in a large house on an Alliance protected planet with all you could ask for, the Elite watching over you while you live in complete freedom."

"And is that excuse enough for crime?" Robiah argued.

"I committed no crime that was not forced upon me," Seeal replied. "Unlike you and the privileged life you had, I had nothing."

"You had a brother," Robiah replied, "who you abandoned to drugs and crime."

Shocked at his ridiculous accusation, Seeal rose up out of her seat slightly. "He got _himself_ into that and far worse than you will ever know. _I_ saved his backside repeatedly and got nothing in return. No respect, no choices of my own, so save me your weak use of my brother. He means _nothing_ to me."

The moment after she finished, she realised she was proving just the opposite. She had lost control of her anger, it's long held simmering suddenly having found an outlet to boil down. She hadn't felt this angry in a long time, and it had gotten her into a petty verbal fight with Robiah, all over her brother still.

To her left, she felt the presence of the male Elite, stood closer now and she realised she was poised ready to attack Robiah though he was across the room and two Elite warriors would surely get in her way.

She forced herself to calm down as she sat back down in her uncomfortable chair.

"You know _nothing_ about me, Robiah, only what Ulfur has told you, and I assure you it will be twisted far from reality," she stated, annoyed at herself for even needing to make that point.

She took a breath and reached for her usual control. Memories slithered into her mind though, traitorously recalling the past in vivid detail. For so long she had gone without Ulfur in her life, without the constant memory of her childhood, of what had happened.

"_He_ is the curse upon _me_," she muttered to herself, angry still despite herself.

"Ulfur may have made his own mistakes, Seeal," Robiah replied, "but at least he is trying to make amends for them. Time changes people."

She glared at him again. "Hatred rarely changes with time."

She looked away from him sharply, refusing to give him any more of her time. "Next face," she demanded towards the wall with the man who had killed prostitutes and her security people and over whose death she felt no guilt.

If only that small element of guilt over Ulfur was so easy to push aside.

The female Elite glanced over towards the scarred male Elite as she pressed the button for the next face. Seeal knew her outburst had revealed too much about herself, her anger, her sensitive point that was Ulfur and their childhood. Robiah had gotten that out of her and the Elite had drunk it in.

Wraith shit.

She looked up at the face now displayed on the wall. "Banfer, he was a smuggler, possibly Quantum," she reported quickly, her voice cold and smooth despite her inner fire still raging.

"Was?" The female Elite asked.

"Dead. No, I didn't kill him," Seeal added quickly. "I heard his body was found drifting in a river on a small non-Alliance world."

"When and on which world?" The female Elite asked with proper interest in her voice now.

Seeal looked up at her, curiosity a welcome distraction from anger and vulnerability. "It was just before we had to abandon Dreamstation, and I don't know which world."

The Elite gave her a disapproving frown and looked away, triggering the next face across the wall.

"I don't know her," Seeal reported, sitting back in her chair, struggling against the varying emotions in her chest, including annoyance at this female Elite and her superior attitude.

"That is the last one," the female Elite reported. "Investigator Robiah, do your people have more?"

"Those were all the main faces we had linked with smuggling and any drugs. I can contact my office and ask for the lesser tagged faces," he replied. "Perhaps in the morning?" He asked, stifling a yawn behind his hand.

"Make the call now," the female Elite told him, "then there is a spare bunk free in the barracks level four for you to use."

"Thank you, Honoured Elite," Robiah replied wearily as he stood up. "What time will we arrive at Sunkara?"

"Five hours or so," the woman replied as she deactivated the display across the wall, and Seeal was desperately relieved to see the blank wall in its place. "I will show you to a communications terminal."

Robiah picked up his pad, all full of Seeal's supplied intell, and crossed the room in front of her. She refused to look up at him, keeping her eyes forward.

"I hope you sleep well tonight, Seeal," he said, which she felt held the threat that the next night would be her first on Rosenthal.

She lifted her eyes up at him, pleased to see that he was leaving more space than was necessary as he passed her. She tracked him as he passed her chair and headed to the door behind her. She looked over her shoulder to watch him leave, the female Elite with him, the door sliding shut behind them. The room was instantly more comfortable without Robiah in it, and she felt the tiredness of the long difficult day making itself truly felt.

Only movement to her left drew her attention slamming back to the fact that the scarred male Elite was still in the room. She was alone with him, and for a moment she wondered if he would be looking for a rematch. She squashed the automatically rising fear back down, reminding herself that she would not be intimidated by him. Besides, she was now his prisoner, providing valuable information and Elite were apparently heroes, so presumably they didn't murder unarmed people in interrogation rooms.

Though that didn't lessen the way his overriding presence seemed to fill the room like never before.

He moved past her chair, crossing in front of her towards the corner where Robiah had been sitting. He moved with the heavy set of a muscular man, but there was an annoying lightness to his steps. She remembered how quick he was in a fight, how strong and deadly he could be.

But she wouldn't be intimidated by him, she reminded herself. She was used to dealing with big males, especially those that felt they were more dangerous than her. Except, in this instance he probably was.

He grasped the back of the chair Robiah had left empty in the corner, and began to drag it forward towards her. The chair's feet screeched across the floor so loud it made Seeal's teeth hurt, but she controlled her expression. She knew he was doing it on purpose.

He pulled the chair up directly in front of her, the back of it turned towards her, and then sat down astride it. It brought him less than a metre away from her, his massive shoulders and arms filling her view, along with the scarred tattooed face above them. He folded his muscular arms over the back of the chair and locked gazes with her.

"Now, we're going to talk about The Traitor," he stated.

Clearly she was not going to be allowed to sleep tonight, which now she thought about it, was in fact a very good interrogation technique. His blunt approach was a well worn technique too, but on him it was rather effective. He needed to do nothing but be. As large, intimidating and clearly powerful as he was, his scars, tattoos and muscular build told a story that instinct alone could interpret.

She would not allow herself to bow to that instinctive reaction though.

"You mean _Iketani_?" She asked, purposefully voicing the name he apparently didn't like to say.

His frown deepened ever so slightly.

"Because, as you can imagine, there were many passing through Dreamstation who could equally be described that way," she continued.

"None like her," he replied and she had to agree with his point.

"She was unique," Seeal agreed, seeing if giving Iketani any description other than traitor would annoy him.

"How did she arrange the attacks on Athos?" He asked directly. Straight to the point, which shouldn't surprise her.

"Through Kolya," Seeal replied equally as directly, watching the Elite carefully, judging his reactions, looking for anything to tell her he was going to become more aggressive or perhaps let slip something she could use somehow.

He angled his head a fraction, which was a demand for her to continue.

She waited a beat longer than necessary before she answered, just to make her own point.

"She met with him on Dreamstation shortly before the assassination on Athos. They met several times, usually in her quarters on the station and usually for many hours." She put emphasis on the last point to see how the Elite would take to the sexual implication about Iketani. Perhaps he had been one of Iketani' many used men, perhaps that was why he was so angry.

"Was Kolya influenced by her?" He asked, and it wasn't a question she had expected.

Seeal considered her answer. "Not that I could tell, but then he was always a difficult man to read. He did remain on the station for the longest time at that point, and I do know that he had many contacts that he drew on during that time."

"Assassins," the Elite stated.

"Intermediaries," Seeal corrected. "Men and women who work as links between people such as Kolya and mercenaries from inside or out of Alliance territory."

"Which intermediary did Kolya use?"

"From what I saw then, and with what I know now, I would say he used several. They probably combined a team between them I would imagine, and they were sent in to Athos. That would be my guess now in hindsight."

"How long had The Traitor visited Dreamstation?" He asked. His intimidation routine had lessened slightly, his eyes no longer as angry as before. Now his gaze was more intelligently intent, now that he was getting the information he wanted. She could almost feel the weight of his sharp gaze on her, reading her as she was reading him.

"I would say at least seven years," Seeal told him, watching carefully for his reaction. It was fleeting, but shock registered around his eyes. He hadn't known, or had only suspected, that Iketani had been working outside his precious Elite ranks and the Alliance border for so long.

"I want to know everything she did on Dreamstation, who she spoke to, who she sent messages to, which ships she used on and off the station, who she fucked, who she killed, and how much of all of this Creass knew."

Seeal nodded faintly. "That is a lot of information for me to recall and note down in one night," she told him. "And I really do now need to use the bathroom."

His eyes narrowed. They were an unusual blue, for usually when seen close up, eyes were a mix of shades, but his were one solid colour. Even his eye colour was uncompromising.

"You will remain on this ship until you have told me everything," he stated.

"Robiah thinks I will be in a Rosenthal prison by tomorrow," she noted out of interest.

"I don't care what Robiah thinks, or wants, or has done," he replied. "There will be no chance of escape for you."

Seeal looked from one cold eye to the other, the dark lines of Wraith killings around the right one and the deep healed scar beneath it. "On this ship perhaps," she told him, "but I will gain my freedom again."

"Again?" He repeated.

She hadn't realised her telling turn of phrase until he had repeated it back to her. How had he known its significance?

"I was free on Dreamstation, and I will be free again," she replied, hoping that would cover up the moment.

Had Ulfur told Robiah her history, had he then shared it with the Elite? She focused sharply on the Elite's face, looking for clues that he knew. She saw nothing that suggested he did, but then he was good at controlling his expression, as she normally was.

"All consequences have to be met," he told her plainly.

"Do you think the Wraith out there beyond your border believe that?" She asked to push him. "That they're not living as they choose, feeding on any humans they wish. What consequences are there for them and the people they kill?"

He stood up from his chair in one smooth motion, towering over her now that he was stood so much closer. "_We_ are the consequences," he proclaimed with typical Elite fanaticism.

But, looking up at him, she could tell he did truly believe what he said, that he might, being the terrorising warrior he clearly was, think he would clean the entire galaxy of Wraith by himself.

"From my experience," she told him, "the strongest get their way, and the rest of us get pulled along in their wake."

"I thought you believed in choices?" He asked, surprising her. Her angry outburst earlier had clearly told him too much about her.

"Some things are put upon us," she replied looking away. "Of course you wouldn't understand."

"Why? Because I'm an Elite?" He asked, surprising her again.

She looked up at him. "Because you have physical power, have had skills trained into you by the best of warriors, using the best technology, and with the belief that your own lives mean nothing."

He frowned down at her. "Elite lives mean as much as any others."

"Then why do you cast them into the cold promise of death so willingly?" She pushed.

He leant down, his large hands coming to rest on either side of back of her chair, filling her view entirely with his aggressive overpowering presence. She held her ground though, refusing to cower back into her seat.

"We die so that people like you have your choices," he told her, his voice soft and powerful. "It is not our fault if you waste them."

He moved away abruptly, leaving her more than a little unbalanced from his intimidation and his logical argument.

"It seems a dangerous thing to judge everyone by such high ideals," she told him.

"Someone has to set the ideal," he replied. "To put all other lives above our own."

She looked up at him, unable to find an answer to that. How could she? Sacrifice, as crazy as she had always thought it to be, was noble in itself. Not that she would think this Elite noble. Elite didn't value their own lives so why did that make them better?

He looked down at her with what looked like victory and then moved out of her view, passing by her chair so close that she felt her hair move.

A sudden rushing compulsion burst up inside her - to just, for once, have someone know.

He triggered open the door behind her.

"How do you think they knew?" She asked the quiet room, not looking round at him.

"Who?" He asked from the doorway.

She looked up at the blank wall in front of her where all those faces had been displayed. All those mean and angry people, so many set on their paths by bad circumstances. It was no excuse, but it was a reason why these things happened perhaps. Why she had become what she was. Why she felt the need to have him, angry, frightening and horribly noble that he was, to think a little differently of her. Even for only a moment.

"The assassins on Athos," she said towards the wall, not wanting to look round at him and allow him to see this need in her. "How did they know she was on Dreamstation?"

He shifted slightly in the doorway behind her and she knew she had caught his interest.

"None of them were on the station," she continued. "Even if they met with Iketani herself via the intermediaries, it wasn't on Dreamstation and she would never have let them know where she was staying. But, perhaps one of those intermediaries of Kolya's had overhead something on Dreamstation himself, someone mentioning Iketani and that she was there. Maybe it was the only way that someone could perhaps bring a consequence to bear."

She hadn't said it directly, but she knew, as intelligent as he apparently was, that he would understand what she meant. Seeal hadn't seen what she had done back then as betraying Creass. Iketani had been trouble from the first moment she had appeared on Dreamstation, but by those last weeks, she had been known as a wanted Elite traitor, and the danger she poised, especially in conjunction with Kolya, had been too much. Seeal had chosen to act, and though ironically that act had brought about the loss of Dreamstation for her and Creass, she had done right in that choice. She had done something, one tiny noble thing at least.

She wished that didn't mean as much to her as it did.

There was no response from the Elite though, no sound from behind her at all, and she was just at the point of believing he might already have left, when he spoke.

"Are you planning to sit there all night?" He asked.

Frowning at the comment, she looked over her shoulder to the door behind her, where he stood sideways in the doorway, arms crossed, as if waiting for her to pass through it. His expression was no different than before, holding no indication that he had either understood her point or thought anything of it.

She felt both annoyed, relieved, and...

She got up from the chair, her foreign boots heavy on her feet, and moved towards him. She kept her chin up as she headed for the space next to him that led out to the empty corridor stretching off ahead. For a moment she wondered what would happen if she just ran, found somewhere small to hide on the ship, to then slip out and off the ship somehow when it reached a dock somewhere. It was a foolish thought of course, for they would be able to scan the ship and find her, and she would need food. No, the best option was to go with how things were for now, to wait for their attention on her to slip slightly and then she would use it to her advantage at the best possible moment.

There wasn't much space left in the doorway that he didn't take up, but she slipped through it, her shoulders back and her chin still up. "Elite hospitality," she muttered just as she passed him and headed down the corridor.

"Prisoners aren't entitled to hospitality," he replied as he followed behind her, his presence cloyingly close still. "Left," he ordered as she reached a junction of corridors.

She looked both ways, instinctively memorising the paths of the ship as she moved through it. She took the left turn, and annoyingly spied two non-Elite men stood ahead outside an open door. This would no doubt be her home for the night, a prison for real for her to sleep in, whilst caged in the much larger box of the Elite ship.

"I still need to use the bathroom," she said when she was halfway towards the open doorway and its guards.

"Left," the Elite ordered from behind, his voice seeming stronger and louder than before.

There was another small junction just before the guards, a crossroads of corridors, which was interesting. She reached it and glanced to the right to see a long running corridor which curved slightly to the right. She estimated they were close to the hull on the left side of the ship.

The Elite stepped into her view of the corridor though, his physical presence 'encouraging' her to go the way he had ordered her. She looked up at him, refusing to just turn and scuttle away immediately, and after a beat only then did she turn and walk down the turning he had ordered her to take. There were three doors at the end of the short corridor, one to each side and one directly ahead. She paused at the end of the corridor, and a long muscular arm reached past her to trigger the door open directly ahead of her. It opened to reveal a small basic toilet room.

"There is nothing in here that can be used as a weapon, no windows, no panels, and the air vent has solid bars over it," he warned from close behind her shoulder. "You have two minutes. You don't come out in that time, then I bring you out regardless as to what state you're in."

She walked into the small room and looked back over her shoulder at him. "Bars over the air vent? Do you really think I could fit through it?"

"I did," he replied and closed the door in her face.

She took an involuntary step back to save her nose from being caught in the closing door, and turned to take in the room. There was a small electronic display beside the door, which had a trigger for an alarm and the time displayed electronically. Presumably there to help prisoners keep taps on their urination time. She ran her fingers around the panel, but it was fixed in well and would need something very sharp and strong to prise it open from its seal. She suspected that even if she got the display open that there would be nothing useful inside.

She looked round the room quickly for anything else that could be useful to her, but came up empty. She checked the time on the panel once more and turned to the toilet to answer the call of nature that had been shouting properly at her since she had entered the room.

As she sat down, she glanced up at the air vent overhead. It really did have thick metal bars across the vent's normal grating. She frowned up at it, gauging the width and deciding whether it would be worth trying to free one of the bars, just to annoy the male Elite if nothing else.

She triggered the toilet to flush and turned to the simple water bowl to wash her hands. There was a pile of thin paper towels, which were no use to anyone to use as a weapon. A cloth towel or an electronic dryer would have been far more useful to her.

Her hands dry, she consulted the time on the panel and waited the further fifteen seconds until her time would be up. She wasn't going to leave a second earlier, and she wondered how long he would wait to come in and get her.

The door opened on the second that her two minutes were up, and he frowned at her through the open door.

She glanced at his wide muscular shoulders. "There's no way you could fit through that air vent," she told him as she strode out of the room and past him.

She headed straight towards the junction she had stopped in previously and without prompting took the left turn, which brought her up to where the two guards were blocking her way. She didn't need another order though, for the open doorway to her immediate left was obviously where she was supposed to go. She strode through the doorway and found herself in a corridor space with one guard sitting at a console, overlooking an empty room that was the brig space.

She heard the Elite entering behind her, but she held still in the middle of the corridor, taking in the details of the console and the guard behind it.

The Elite's hand pressed against her back with medium force.

She took the less than subtle order and entered the cell, stepping over a lip across the floor that delineated the prison space from the corridor. There was nothing in the cell except a bed/bench built into the wall. A rushing buzz rung out behind her and she turned to see the shimmer of a force-field form up from the lip she had stepped over.

On the other side of the force-field, the Elite turned and walked away, not looking back once, and without a snappy come back. She was almost disappointed. She had hoped the air vent comment might have gotten a better reaction than that.

The lights dimmed inside the cell, leaving the only light source as that above the guard's console on the other side of the force-field. The field created the sense of being isolated in the cell, the air and sounds naturally blocked by it.

Silence surrounded her.

Tiredness hit her fully, the entire day suddenly feeling like a heavy weight on her thoughts and body. She had not slept for perhaps a day and a half, and it had been a very long day.

She decided to keep on her heavy boots as she climbed onto the bed bench. There was a thin sheet supplied, one that she suspected would tear with any medium pressure, and a pillow that was pathetically thin, again not being useful for anything that would require any force. There was nothing she could use here.

All she could do was sleep, which would not be a problem.

She turned onto her side, facing away from the guard and his force-field. The dull plain wall filled her view as she folded the thin pillow in half to provide more padding. She then arranged the thin sheet over her, though it was warm enough in the cell to be comfortable.

Settled, she laid still, knowing there would be at least one camera watching her at all times. She would not give them any satisfaction of making her feel uncomfortable or caged in.

In truth, this was perhaps the safest environment in which she had ever slept. No one was going to potentially break into her room in the middle of the night and try to kill her, as had always been a risk on Dreamstation and even on Lalwani. She had no doubt that Uppal had imagined doing just that.

This cell, designed to be basic and unappealing, was actually the most comfortable of places she had ever laid her head to sleep.

Amused by that fact, she closed her eyes and smiled at the silence and peace around her. The future was somewhat unsure, but for now, she would gather the rest she could. She would need all her strength ready for the moment when she could escape.

For now though, she felt strangely comfortable as a prisoner of the Elite.

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TBC


	11. Weapons of Peace

**Chapter 11 – Weapons of Peace**

It was dark and raining on Sunkara, the rain pattering softly against the avenue of trees under which the transport craft had landed. There were no detection fields on Sunkara, no sky traffic except the occasional trader, and as such no one would have detected the Sythus' arrival in orbit. They had timed their arrival perfectly so that the transport craft had slipped into the darkened side of Sunkara, down through dim dark thin clouds towards the target water company's mass of buildings set around the mouth of a wide river. A dull constant sound of the pumps and rushing water pipes could be heard over the light pattering of the rain, but there was little else to hear. Most of the water company's workers would have left the works to their homes in the nearby village. Sunkara clung proudly to its agrarian lifestyle, even with its huge increases in its population, but its success in trade had brought about the widespread use of solar batteries that supplied the villages with indoor lighting and cooking facilities.

Teyla looked out across the pinpoints of light defining the most village in the darkness. Everyone would be home, except for the most powerful in the company. She and Si had timed their arrival so that most of the workers would be gone, but the management levels would still be finishing up their work. Robiah had provided a detailed schematic of the main buildings of The Jewelled Inlet Water Purification Company along with a vague outline of the working rota in the waterworks. Robiah had clearly done considerable homework on this company, which concerned Teyla somewhat. The Investigator had said the water companies had been investigated in regards to local environmental issues, but his reports seemed disproportionately detailed for something relatively simple as that. It made Teyla wonder if Robiah, or at least someone in the Investigation Division, had been suspicious of the water companies previously.

As she and Si entered over a low lying fence surrounding the water company's property, she pulled out her electronic pad and consulted the map of the buildings. It was unnecessary though, for the tallest building just ahead was obviously main office building even without consulting Robiah's notes. Teyla triggered up the internal schematic of the building, despite having studied it in detail over the last hour. She had managed to catch a good few hours of sleep on the way to Sunkara, and felt reasonably refreshed, yet her dreams has been plagued with the worrying premise of Wraith reading thoughts as they drained the life out of everyone on the ship.

"We are trusting this intell?" Si asked quietly, his first words on the mission since they had entered the transport craft back in the Sythus.

A little surprised by his decision to bring up his point now, she nonetheless understood. Walking through the darker shadow of the office building towards its concealed side entrance, she too felt the potential weakness of this endeavour. They were working on the word of a known criminal and the suspicious character of Robiah, who Teyla was not above suspecting to be working his own angle on all of this.

"We have little else to go on at this time," she replied to Si, the rain lightly falling between them as they moved around the foot of the building. The main front entrance on the other side of the building would have a brightly lit reception space and welcoming security. She and Si preferred not to announce their arrival to the president of the company by using that way into the building.

"If Seeal has lied to us, or is wrong, then this might cause fractions with Sunkara," Si uttered as they drew to a stop outside the side door, dark and securely locked from inside.

Teyla looked up at him as she set the small decoder against the door and activated it. "We will find out soon enough."

Si grunted deeply, but quietly. It would be his only answer, she knew.

The decoder flashed once and inside the frame Teyla heard a soft click. She pulled out a knife from her belt and slid its sharp edge into the tiny space opened at the side of the door, and encouraged it open.

A faint tangy scent greeted her nose as she pulled the door fully open, revealing a long dull corridor. Moving inside, she consulted her pad for the internal layout once more. The company's President's office was located, according to Robiah's information, on the top floor, which could be accessed from the stairwell just around the corner. Teyla strode forward using a confident step, Si at her side.

The stairwell was unguarded and had an even stronger scent of cleaning products as they made their way up to the top floor of the building. At each floor, there were two glass doors leading off to long empty corridors. At the top floor, Si reached forward and pulled open the single glass door and they moved swiftly down the short corridor and turned left to see a guard sat behind a desk ahead, his jaw set in his hand, bored and alone. He heard their footsteps, but only looked round when they were a few metres away, which suggested that there was no heighted security here and that this man was young and inexperienced.

Bored dull eyes looked up towards them with disinterest. Shock registered on the guard's young face and he instantly he shot upright, knocking his chair back as he did. Wide eyes above a gaping mouth told Teyla he had never seen an Elite before, and that he would be no hindrance at all.

"Name?" Si demanded as they approached.

The boy in a man's uniform, moved his mouth, but no words came out for a second. "Hovea," he got out the second time.

Almost upon him now, Si took the lead. "The Company President is here," he stated.

Hovea nodded immediately.

"Take us to him," Si ordered.

Hovea nodded again, stumbled around his desk to get out and assist them. "Are we in danger?" He managed to ask, his wits returning to him. The presence of Elite in most occasions meant that Wraith would be nearby, and Teyla suspected this young man had never seen a Wraith in his life.

"Not yet," Si replied as he moved down the corridor, forcing Hovea to hurry to get ahead to lead them down a side corridor to where an equally young woman was sat outside two large dark red doors. She looked up and her face paled. She rose up, one hand partway to her mouth in shock.

"How may I help you?" She asked as if unsure if she should ask.

"We will seen the President now," SI stated as they moved past her and he grasped the large door handles to the president's office in his equally large hands and pulled. The doors swung open wide on well oiled hinges as she and Si strode into the large wide office of the president of The Jewelled Inlet Water Purification Company.

Teyla had of course read his profile before the trip, but basic facts only told you so much. He was one of the oldest presidents in any of the water companies, having kept his seat of power despite the younger greedy managers no doubt pursuing his position. His family had always been a part of the cooperative group that had founded the original company, and he had personally overseen its rapid growth under the protection and formation of the Alliance. He had lived in the times of the Wraith culling any worlds they wished, and as such Teyla suspected he would have some appreciation for the Elite.

The water President looked up from his desk with a frown at the interruption of his solitude, which Teyla suspected rarely occurred. His expression changed immediately to shock and a rush of primal fear that confirmed to her that his first association with Elite was the Wraith. His eyes flew immediately away to the large windows overlooking the river mouth outside. Teyla saw his gaze was directed up towards the sky, looking for darts with the practiced eye of one who had grown up doing so.

"There are no Wraith on Sunkara," Teyla informed him as she and Si moved further into his office, towards his highly polished wooden desk.

His gaze moved away from the windows with clear relief, but was quickly replaced with confusion.

"Anastas?" The woman asked from the doorway, and the president's eyes shifted to her.

"It is alright," he replied to her, his voice soft and deep, one of a leader, of someone who was trusted.

"If you are sure?" The woman asked, though Teyla wondered what the woman thought would happen if he said otherwise.

Having reached the middle of Anastas' office, Teyla stopped and faced him. Si moved further across the room, a sensing pad in his hand, searching for any recording devices or any other readings of note.

"Return to your work," Anastas told his assistant, perhaps secretary, and the doors closed solidly on their efficient hinges. Anastas looked at Si and then to her with a smile that was clearly very controlled. "Forgive my welcome, I never expected Elite warriors to walk into my office."

"I imagine you had prepared more for the arrival of the Investigation Division," Teyla said.

Anastas's expression smoothed into a studied frown as he sat back slightly in his seat, appearing relaxed. "I am afraid I do not understand."

Si returned from his sweep of the room and stood beside Teyla, his arms crossed.

Anastas looked between them, his lips appearing dry within his grey beard. He had a very stylised hairstyle and dress, as was common among the most successful on Sunkara. He wore a small broach on one shoulder, a symbol of his family, and a heavy looking necklace sat high up against his throat, both shining with excessive expense. On his desk, a gold plated pen and two statues of likely expensive artistic origin held pride of place. Behind him, there was a large painting of the river mouth outside with a far older version of the company's works set around it. He was proud of his accomplishments, proud of the company he led. She wondered why he would risk it by producing Quantum. If he did at all – they had only Seeal's word.

"How may I help you, Honoured Elite?" Anastas asked, still seated in his comfortable chair, his hands resting on the top of his desk as if to make it clear they were empty.

Teyla lifted up her electronic pad and called up the image of Khor that Seeal had provided, and held it up so Anastas could see.

Anastas' gaze fixed on the image for a moment, and one cheek shifted a little. He looked back up to her. "I do not know this man," he told her.

"But you have seen his face before," Teyla told him.

Anastas' eyes slid back to the picture and then back to her. His expression was still, fearful for sure, but Teyla was not entirely sure if it was fear of the Elite.

"I have never met him," Anastas replied and Teyla smiled at his turn of phrase. She lowered the pad and waited for more.

Anastas looked to Si and back to her in the silence.

"The Elite are hunting this man," Teyla told him. "Do you wish to be in our way?"

Anastas shifted in his chair and cleared his throat. "Honoured Elite, I am afraid I know nothing of the military politics going on through the Portals and across Alliance stars. I am just a humble purifier, working for the needs of my local community."

"You judge producing the illegal drug known as Quantum as providing for your community's needs?" Teyla asked.

Anastas' looked up at her, his body frozen still. "I am just a purifier," he said.

"You are the president in charge of a massive company that provides for many people, people who depend on your business continuing, _uninterrupted_."

Anastas held his breath and she saw the inward pull of his lower lip that meant he was likely biting on inside his mouth. He had something to say for sure. Seeal's information was correct.

"I wonder what the local people will say when your illegal operations come to light," Teyla asked thoughtfully. "I imagine many will lose considerable respect for you and that it will reflect negatively upon your entire family, current and past."

Anastas glanced aside and back. "And, perhaps if I were to have some information...? That I had happened to hear one day in passing."

Success blossomed in Teyla's middle. "Then, perhaps, the Investigation Division will not be informed of Quantum production on Sunkara until tomorrow, allowing your company a short time to ensure that none of your workers might have been producing such illegal drugs without your knowledge. I suspect that will put you in good stead in comparison with your local competitors."

Anastas licked his lips openly this time as he reached up to adjust the collar of his jacket, loosening it slightly. "And my company will not be tarnished by the ensuing investigations?"

"If your company is clean on inspection, and _continues_ to be so, then I do not see why it would be."

Anastas sighed and nodded. He then sat up straighter and leant forward, his forearms set on the desk. "What do you want to know?"

"This man," Teyla lifted the pad, "Tell us all you know about him."

Anastas glanced down at the picture and then back up to her. "His name is Khor, and he has been a significant threat to...certain people with specific interests."

"He is producing new generations of Quantum," Teyla jumped ahead.

"The last generation only, if you don't count the new fabled version that is rumoured."

"Have you met with him?"

"No," Anastas stated with a definite shake of his head. "He exists on the fringes of known networks and dealers, and his arrival coincided with several deaths of prominent dealers."

Teyla was not surprised, for Khor would have needed to have provided himself a space in the Quantum world into which to insert his own Quantum.

"Where is he from?" Teyla asked.

"We have no idea," Anastas replied. "And believe me when I say, many of my associates have tried to find him. He appeared out of nowhere, and no one has been able to find out how he came by his skills at manufacturing Quantum."

"Why would that be so informative?" Teyla asked.

"His generation of Quantum is highly advanced beyond others, which in my experience usually only occurs when a student surpasses a master. Khor has no links that we could trace with anyone, other than to the dealers he removed."

"Is there any pattern in those he killed?"

"None that we could see, other than they were effective at their trade."

Teyla wanted to sigh with frustration – another dead end it seemed.

"Where does he produce his Quantum?" She asked.

Anastas shrugged. "We do not know, there are no clues, no footprints left by him anywhere." Teyla watched him, sensing, and hoping for, more in his sentence. "Except perhaps for the absence of them."

"Meaning?"

Anastas sat back in his chair. "My associates have links throughout the Alliance, even beyond to the systems still outside our expanding border. Nowhere is there trace of Khor, which made my associates conclude that Khor is not in Alliance space. Likely nowhere near it."

"His operation could be based on a ship," Si put in, voicing Oneakka's theory.

Anastas angled his head. "It is possible, but I still do not see how his operation could remain entirely hidden in Alliance space. Every ship needs supplies, of workers, food, the water for the Quantum base, the filters for the purifying process... All of those elements have to come from somewhere, and there is not even a hint anywhere, among those who know what to look for, that Khor uses anything related to the Alliance. And the few samples of his product we have analysed suggest that he is using unique methods and chemical sources."

Teyla considered his information, and him. He looked up at her, cautious, but more confident now. His eyes held hers for longer than before and the touch of his own frustration in the lack of information on Khor seemed to suggest that he was being truthful.

"What else?" Teyla asked, keeping the question open.

Anastas' gaze lowered to her pad, where Khor's image was still somewhat visible. "Some have suggested that perhaps he is from the newly arrived people living in the City of the Ancestors. They are said to have advanced medicines and technology."

Teyla could understand that viewpoint, since Atlantis was an unknown entity to many in Anastas' industry and connections, and with Khor appearing out of nowhere, it was a logical enough suggestion.

"He is not one of them," Teyla replied, feeling compelled, despite herself, to ensure that John and his people were not in any way blamed.

Anastas sighed. "Then he is even more of a mystery."

"Is it possible that he is a middleman working for another party?" Teyla asked.

"Unlikely, his product is unique and he makes no claims at having a master of his own."

Teyla watched Anastas closely for a silent moment.

"My best guess," he said under her stare, "is that he is from far outside the Alliance. Perhaps a naturally advanced chemist who has adapted the Quantum that is on the market."

"That _was_ on the market," Teyla corrected with a lifted eyebrow. "I suggest that from now on, your company should remain as pure as the water you produce."

He glanced downwards to his desk. "Just because something is illegal does it make it wrong?"

"By the laws of the Alliance, yes," Teyla replied. "And do you think Elite would waste their time investigating a harmless mood lifter?"

Anastas looked up with a frown.

"Clean up your business, Anastas, by tomorrow," she ordered as she turned and strode back across his office.

"Thank you, Honoured Elite," Anastas called quietly, almost off hand, but her point had been heard. She suspected there would be much activity in The Jewelled Inlet Water Purification Company works tonight.

Si fell into step with her as she pushed open the doors to Anastas' office and marched down the corridors. Hovea hovered in the background for a few steps, but fell back.

"That achieved little," Si intoned as they moved down the stairwell.

She had to agree with him, "Except for one point, which is that Khor is likely working well outside the Alliance."

"Which helps us little," Si replied. "Our reach is far, but if we take the Sythus out beyond our borders, we will risk political problems and possible retaliation by the Travellers, the Wraith, and perhaps even those from Atlantis."

"Atlantis is the one group who will likely assist us in this endeavour," Teyla replied quickly. "Their reach is considerable through their own trade between non-Alliance worlds and ventures through the Portals. They have offered their assistance on this matter."

"I have not spent as much time in their city as you," Si replied as they reached the bottom of the stairwell and entered the short corridor to the side door that had been their entrance. Teyla wondered at Si' turn of phrase, making sure not to look round at him as she pushed open the door and they stepped out into the dark night of Sunkara. The rain had stopped, but it had left the air thick with humidity.

"I believe they are honourable," she said to him firmly.

"I do not doubt that some of them are," Si replied, with what she detected as a careful tone, "but they have their own leaders, councils and politicians, as we do. We must be careful how we share knowledge with them."

Teyla frowned at him walking beside her. "The Military Council have sanctioned working with them."

"Yet, they are not the Ancestors returned, Teyla."

"Do you think I do not know that?" She asked, striding a little faster across the damp ground. Like Halling before, was Si questioning her and her relationship with John?

"I think you wish to use them," Si replied, surprising her.

"Use them?"

"Not as you might use Sheppard," Si replied, sudden humour in his voice, "but to use as a weapon to strengthen the Military's reach over the High Council's edicts."

Shocked at his sudden mention of John, the sexual reference, and then his serious point at her motives, Teyla almost tripped over the fence she was climbing over. She regained her poise quickly and turned to stare at Si as he stepped easily over the low fence.

"I have no political motives," she objected, honestly surprised.

Si smiled at her like she was being foolish. "You are the most politically driven out of all the Elite."

"I sit on the Military Council now-"

"No, from long before that," he replied as they walked through the avenue of trees to where the transport craft sat, the pilot starting up the engines upon seeing them approach.

Teyla stopped though, not wishing to complete this discussion in the transport craft were they would be overheard. "All of us want the same thing, for the Wraith threat to be eliminated, for all people to be free."

Si looked down at her from his impressive height and width. He smiled at her with honest amusement that she found confusing.

"Yet you do not wish to gain that achievement through only killing Wraith," he told her. "You wish to see a unified combined galaxy, all worlds in unity, trading and protecting each other."

Teyla frowned up at him. "That is an ideal that everyone has."

"No, Teyla," he replied. "Most just want their own worlds left alone, to be free of the Wraith, and to continue as they were."

"It is through working together that such a goal can be achieved," she argued.

"I am not saying you are wrong," he replied. "But we are Elite – we work to destroy Wraith, not to unify the galaxy. And not to make peace with other galaxies."

"Both aims can be achieved at once."

"And that is what sets you apart," Si said. "Why you are driven to work alongside Nalla on the Military Council, why you have helped forge the potential treaty with Atlantis. Most Elite do not care, Teyla. You are striving for negotiations that are of your own desire."

"I only desire to eliminate the Wraith."

Si gave her a sideways look that seemed both amused and doubtful, and then moved onwards towards the waiting transport craft.

She followed him, feeling a little unsure as to the point of the conversation. "Are you suggesting that I should focus solely on battles with the Wraith? That planning treaties that could help us achieve further destruction of the Wraith is incorrect?"

"No, Teyla," Si replied. "I am simply stating only that you might be wise to remember the difference between our true mission and the sidelines of such treaties as with Atlantis."

He had reached the craft, the hatch open ready for them. She caught his arm before he moved inside, and he looked back down at her.

"I am not distracted by Atlantis," she insisted quietly, knowing he understood that she meant John as well as his people.

"No one questions your motives," Si replied. "I suspect the need to negotiate, to improve things, is in your blood, Teyla. You do not realise how often you sound like Torren when you speak of treaties and common grounds. It is the way of Athos to trade, to work together."

"I am Elite as well as Athosian," she replied, though struck by this new reflection of herself through his eyes.

"As am I," he replied with a pointed smile and slipped out from under her hand and climbed into the transport craft.

Feeling somewhat confused by Si' many points, she followed him inside, shutting the hatch and sitting down on the bench directly opposite him. The craft rose up from the damp ground of Sunkara, and soon enough the thin clouds outside gave way to the black starry void of space. Lost in replaying his words, she looked away from the sight of the Sythus fast approaching.

Si looked from the view to meet her gaze, his frighteningly insightful eyes seeming amused once more. "There is nothing wrong with being more than one thing, Teyla," he said.

"It is not the Elite way though," she stated.

"Since when are any of us on the Sythus a standard reflection of an Elite warrior? As much as our training demanded that we focus only on our mission, that we forget what has come before in our lives, and disregard any connections, we are all still human. After so many years, so many battles, so many victories won and years gained on what was predicted for us, is it any surprise that we find ourselves in a more complicated time? Alliances outside our territory, far-reaching political issues, internal crimes in the Alliance, and even betrayal within our own ranks is changing us. Perhaps Elite will one day be more than the sharp point of the Alliance Military, but for now that is still what we are, and we must tread carefully politically and strategically."

It was likely the longest sentence she had heard from Si in quite some time, and she could not argue against any of it. His words felt like reins tugging her back though, pulling her focus from the bright sparkling ideal she realised she had had in her mind for some time. That with Atlantis discovered, now filled with skilled humans from another galaxy, it could herald a new wave in the war against the Wraith, that in working together, with as many others as possible, that the Wraith could finally be defeated.

Perhaps then, in such freedom, she could perhaps enjoy her life. She could watch her family grow old, safe and secure. She could watch her fellow Elite live and not simply face death every day.

She had not realised how strong such hopes were inside her – so different to what an Elite should believe. She had thought herself focused in her work, but the ideals she had formed in her mind had still lived on, hopefully ready to be created, even if she had to sacrifice her life for it to be achieved.

"If we are not fighting for a unified ideal for everyone, then what is the point?" She asked Si, voicing something of which Elite should never speak.

"For freedom not to unity," Si replied. "For freedom, so that the millions of families, of children, can grow up without the fear, the fear we lived through as children on Athos."

She nodded, but a heavy feeling of sadness hung in her heart as she watched the back end of the Sythus fill the window, the bay bright and bare inside. Despite Si' wise words, the reflection of the Elite way of living and of thinking she had followed for so many years, she knew that she still felt different. That she felt she could do more than just kill Wraith, even if it was just to help bring about a treaty that might bring more freedom to others.

She did not wish to be just a weapon of war; she could be a weapon of peace as well.

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TBC


	12. Past Pain

**Chapter 12 – Past Pain**

The thin metal bars crisscrossing through the small window in the interrogation room door felt happily like prison bars to Oneakka as he watched Robiah talking with Teyla inside.

The Investigator looked tired, probably not having had the most restful night's sleep in the barracks, but then it seemed most of the ship hadn't had a good night following the unsuccessful trip to Sunkara. Si had been brooding quietly over the first meal this morning, while Teyla had insisted the trip to the water company had not been a waste of time. Khor was apparently working far out in non-Alliance territory, which was hardly a surprise to Oneakka, but it did complicate matters.

Oneakka had had a good night's sleep despite the state of their investigation. He had fallen into his bed with the deep satisfaction that he was finally seeing results on his quest to discover all Iketani had spun out of view of the Elite. He would get Creass soon, despite Creass' watchdog's opinion on the matter. Victory was already settling in Oneakka's hands and so he had slept the sleep of the just and grateful.

It seemed that one other person had slept well last night though, which was surprising. The guard stationed outside Seeal's cell had sent Oneakka hourly reports on the prisoner, which had all, including the latest one, reported that she was still sleeping deeply. Oneakka had his suspicions about that, and he had left strict orders that no one was to enter her cell but him, even if she was rolling around on the floor dying. She was a crafty creature, and not just judging from Robiah's very limited records on her, which had contained barely any facts about her life and skills. Robiah's details on her had merely been recorded rumours of what she had gotten up to on Dreamstation. Oneakka didn't put much weight on rumours – it was what was at the heart of them all combined that had would hold a seed of the truth. And that seed very accurately matched what he had actually witnessed himself; she was intelligent, manipulative, mouthy, an unexpectedly clever fighter, and ultimately a survivor.

If she escaped her cell, she had nowhere to go on the Sythus, but he would not put it past her to find some hidden hole they didn't know about and somehow sabotage the ship to force them into dock. Her technical skills were unknown, but judging by the two pieces of tech he had taken off her last night, which he had taken apart to study, she certainly knew how to use cobbled together tech. One had been a signalling device, which could be received by anything, and was unhelpful without knowing where she had intended to use it. The other tiny piece of tech had been a small jamming box. All she would need was a small power source to link it in with and it would create a jamming field. It would be a small field, but nonetheless it was very useful. Every Elite always carried at least one such device. He hadn't been able to tell if she had put the devices together herself or had bought them off someone. There had been several DNA signatures on the devices, but she could have simply have put the tech down on a communally used table to pick up a few random skin cells that would have confused the readings.

"I don't think its wise having him in on the interrogation," Kari stated from Oneakka's left, drawing his attention back to the conversation they had been having as they had looked through the interrogation room's window.

"He knows more," Oneakka repeated his opinion.

"Keeping anything from us is a breach," Kari muttered. "I say we put him in an interrogation room of his own and get the information out of him."

"Teyla is talking to him," Oneakka pointed out. Teyla was good at getting people to trust her.

"In a friendly manner, while we wait for you to wake up our prisoner," Kari replied.

Oneakka smiled faintly without looking at her, but knowing she could see it. Of all the Elite, he was seen as the most impatient, but he knew the truth – Kari was far worse than him, she just hid it better.

"Are you going to let her sleep _all_ day?" She continued with an annoyed, yet teasing edge to her voice.

"Doubt she's actually sleeping," he replied as he watched Robiah moving round in the room down the end of the corridor.

Teyla was treating him as an equal, judging by the body language, which would raise his self-confidence and perhaps push him to let something slip. She would skilfully use words and facts to probe his knowledge, yet Oneakka agreed with Kari that a more direct approach was required. However, he didn't believe putting the man alone in a room was the best way just yet. There was a reason why Robiah had wanted in on this investigation, and Oneakka would bet it had something to do with Seeal. By withholding Seeal's presence for an hour after the first meal, Oneakka hoped that Robiah was growing as anxious as the other Elite to get her to talk more about what she might know of Khor.

Through the window, Robiah turned and rubbed the back of his head, glanced at his wrist timepiece and turned back towards Teyla.

"I'll get her now," Oneakka decided and turned into the corridor to the brig. "Bring her a bowl of rice-meal porridge; she can eat in the interrogation."

"We could truth-drug it," Kari suggested, "Get the real truth out of her."

Oneakka paused and turned back to her. "No drugs."

"We don't have time for this," she argued.

"We don't have anything," Oneakka pointed out, "So what is the rush. We don't drug her because she might already be inoculated and, more importantly, I want her responses natural to get what we need out of Robiah."

Kari frowned, but nodded vaguely. "But if this doesn't work," she stated, pointing at him, "then we truth-drug them both."

Oneakka shrugged. "It'll work," he replied before turning away. It would work because Oneakka would make sure it did. If it came down to it, he would haul Robiah into a small room just the two of them.

The guards outside the brig stood up sharply and nodded to him as he strode into the brig. The guard sat at his station outside the high-level containment cell, stood up and nodded.

"Honoured Elite," he greeted.

Oneakka nodded vaguely as he moved further in to look through the force-field.

Seeal was in the same position she had been the last time he had looked at the security feed. Curled up on her side, she hadn't appeared to have moved an inch.

"She has barely moved all night. Scanners read a deep sleep," the guard reported.

Oneakka frowned and moved to the station himself and triggered up the readings, forcing the guard to step back to give him room. He was right, the scanner showed lowered blood pressure, respiration and body temperature. Oneakka frowned as he moved away from the station back to the force-field.

It was unusual for a prisoner to be so relaxed, not unless they were exhausted. She had been tired last night, but not exhausted. Trapped in a cell, nowhere to go except for the promise of a desperate escape at some point or a dark horrible cell on Rosenthal would make anyone less than relaxed. Yet, here she was sleeping as deeply as baby Aki did in Massa's arms.

Which meant that she was either unaffected emotionally by what was happening to her, which was unlikely considering her reactions in her interrogation yesterday, that she was faking the sensors somehow, or she usually had little sleep. Most warriors had ways of capturing good deep sleep in the short moments they could, concentrating and adapting their sleep as needed. Oneakka would assume then that she had developed the same technique and that she had deemed her stay in this cell as a safe enough place to catch up on some decent sleep. Which was interesting. Her life since Dreamstation was likely less than relaxing for her and Creass, which pleased Oneakka greatly.

He deactivated the force-field and stepped into the cell.

She woke instantly, jerking up and round, one fist balled up ready to strike. Bleary tired eyes swept the area around her in an instant and settled on him. Oneakka crossed his arms and gave her a grim satisfied smile, happy to have woken her so uncomfortably, and that it had proven his theory correct. This woman slept on a trigger, most likely used to sleeping in dangerous places and having to defend herself. That was what happened when you were on the wrong side.

She blinked and lowered her arm, probably unaware she had even lifted it, and he watched as she quickly regained her usual aloof control. It was far too late for that though, he had seen her break already yesterday, had seen her weaknesses, and he suspected she knew that as well. She stood up from the bed and held her chin high, proud and strong.

"Time for breakfast?" She asked with that sing-song bitter tone she had used so much yesterday.

He jerked his head towards the exit, but didn't move from where he stood. She would be the one to walk out first - he wasn't giving her an inch.

She walked forward, her steps not quite as awake as she likely wanted them to be and he saw her expression of annoyance at herself as she passed by him. She lifted one of her long legs up over the lip of the cell easily though and strode out of the brig with a quick pace to make it clear to him that she was awake and alert. Oneakka followed, amused - she was all about control, so easy to read and manipulate.

He hadn't warned the guards to let her pass, so they had stopped her in the doorway, which he had planned. Seeal didn't look round at him though; she just stood waiting, impatience a cloud around her despite her attempt to be cool about the situation. Oneakka nodded to the guards and they let her through.

"Round to the right again," Oneakka ordered her as he followed her out into the corridor.

She didn't reply, but turned at the corridor junction to the three washrooms.

"Door on the left," Oneakka ordered.

She stopped for a second before triggering open the left door that led into a washroom, which included a shower and a clean change of clothes for her.

She sauntered into the room, looking around at the fixtures, walls, floor and the shower area, making it clear that she was looking for something to use as a weapon or a way out. There was absolutely nothing in there to use. He had made sure of that.

"You have five minutes," he told her. "You're not out in that time, then you're taken to the interrogation room in whatever state you're in."

She turned back to him and crossed her arms. "Think I'm going to slither down the plughole? Or have you already tried that yourself?"

"Five minutes," he repeated and triggered the door. He wondered if she would make some comment about him coming in to get her if she was naked or on the toilet, but she didn't. She just rolled her eyes as the door slid shut between them.

Pleased to have annoyed her into silence, he moved back to the corridor junction and pulled out his communications pad to check through the latest reports. Jobrill had used the Sunkaran Portal to travel to the Military Council meeting, in place of both Teyla and Nalla, and Seifer had taken a Portal back to the outer Lantana region, where the battle there remained at a standstill. Si had taken the duty command up in the Sythus' Central Station; not that the pilots had anywhere to guide the Sythus – they had no leads yet on where to find Khor, but Oneakka would get something, if not from Seeal, then from Robiah through her. Robiah had an angle in all this, a sideways path that he was working on, using the Elite and Seeal in doing so. Oneakka wouldn't have that – no one used the Elite – and there was no way Robiah was going to take the prisoner. Seeal would pay for the crimes she had committed, would tell him where Creass was hiding, and then Oneakka would track down everyone linked with Iketani.

He checked the time on the pad – three and a half minutes.

He glanced aside down the corridor, to see Kari pass through it, a bowl in one hand and a cup of water in the other. She nodded and disappeared towards the interrogation room.

The washroom door opened behind him and he turned quickly. Seeal stepped out, washed and dressed in her change of clothes and her heavy military boots. He had expected her to take her time, to force him to wait for her, and that she would make a fuss as she had last night. She had showered very fast though, her black hair hanging wet down her back. She crossed her arms, defiant and clearly pleased to have surprised him. One point to her perhaps.

"That way," he ordered down the corridor which Kari had just crossed.

"Do I ever get the chance to tie my hair up again?" Seeal asked as she passed by him, smelling strongly of the basic ship soap. Her long hair was slightly tangled with being washed, but he would never trust her with a comb. "I didn't realise Elite were so afraid of hairbands," she stated as she strode away down the corridor.

He followed along behind her, choosing silence as the best method with her now. She liked to argue, so he wasn't going to give in to that.

"Next right," he ordered after a second.

"I remember," she protested over her shoulder as she took the turn.

"Someone didn't sleep well," he found himself responding.

"I slept fine, thank you," she responded. "An Elite ship doesn't scare me."

"What does?" He asked. "A Rosenthal cell? I hear they make you sleep on damp floors," he baited her, as up ahead he saw that Kari had left open the door to the interrogation room.

"I've slept on far worse," Seeal replied. Her head held higher, she walked into the interrogation room and sat straight down on the chair she had vacated last night.

Oneakka entered and shut the door behind him. Teyla and Robiah were sat in front of Seeal, and Kari moved forward. She held out the bowl of rice-meal porridge and the plastic cup of water to Seeal, who took them with a suspicious frown. Kari moved away to stand close to Teyla.

Seeal drank a few gulps of the water with what looked like true thirst, and set it down on the floor beside her chair. Oneakka watched where she placed it, and bet she wished it was a glass cup rather than plastic. She sat back in her chair and moved the spoon suspiciously round in the porridge.

Sighing loudly, Oneakka moved forward and scooped up a tiny amount from the side of the bowl and ate it. Seeal's dark eyes looked up at him with a frown that either meant she was waiting to see if he would drop dead or that she was annoyed he had touched her food. Still alive and breathing, Oneakka returned to his usual place, leant against the wall behind Seeal's shoulder.

Apparently satisfied with his testing of her food, Seeal began to eat as Teyla stepped forward.

"We visited Anastas," she reported, "who had little to give us."

"I didn't say he would have anything, only that he would likely know more than anyone else," Seeal replied around her food, the second spoonful quickly following the first. The rice-meal was basic and somewhat tasteless, but it contained all the nutrition someone needed, and she was obviously hungry. He had had a bowl himself this morning, but his had been sweetened with fruit and honey. He wondered how much food Creass had access to now he had had to run from Dreamstation, or perhaps he had more available now, if he wasn't on another space station.

"He says his associates know nothing, other than they believe Khor has based his operations far outside Alliance space," Teyla continued.

Seeal angled her head slightly as she ate. "Not surprising, but it would have to be a world with a Portal through which to transport his Quantum."

"Where would he be?" Teyla asked.

"As I _already_ said yesterday, I have no idea where he's based, or where Kolya's based. They work outside the Alliance, as Dreamstation did, but most of us, including all of you, had expected Khor to be closer to your territory. He could be from anywhere."

"Is there anywhere beyond our territory that would be a good guess as to where he might be?" Teyla pushed, some exasperation clear in her voice now.

"Any number of planets, there are thousands of planets and moons with Portals," Seeal replied around another spoonful of food. "And on most non-Alliance worlds, the populations are far smaller than in your territory. They have been culled constantly, and more lately, and many of them don't want to risk using the Portals. Any world could have a factory set up on it and it be kept in secret. Khor has never mentioned anywhere he has been, and all other suppliers of Quantum have always been based in Alliance territory."

More dead ends.

"At least as far as _I_ know," Seeal added as she looked at Robiah.

"You were the one who told me about Khor," Robiah replied.

"Her and your other unnamed source," Oneakka put in.

Teyla turned to Robiah. "Who is this other source?"

"Just a dealer who works out beyond the borders," Robiah replied.

"Have you contacted this dealer?" Teyla demanded.

"I have been unable to contact him again."

"When did you try?"

"I spoke to him the day after Seeal gave me Khor's name, but have been unable to get a response from him since."

"How do you contact him?" Teyla asked.

"I leave a message with a third party on Dreamstation," Robiah replied. Oneakka saw Seeal look up from her rapidly emptying bowl of rice-meal.

"Who?" She asked.

"Jantina," Robiah replied.

Teyla looked at Seeal.

"A prostitute on Dreamstation, though she runs a profitable second business passing messages between different parties."

"You have asked this Jantina where your source is working and living?" Teyla asked impatiently of Robiah.

"I tried, but she's left Dreamstation," he reported.

Seeal paused with obvious surprise at hearing that, her spoon paused halfway up to her mouth. "Jantina's left Dreamstation? Permanently?"

Robiah nodded. "Her room has been cleared out."

Stood behind her, Oneakka couldn't see Seeal's face clearly, but by the continuing tense line of her shoulders, he could tell she was shocked by this development.

"Why leave Dreamstation now?" Oneakka asked.

Seeal's head angled slightly as if she had an answer to that, but she didn't say anything as Robiah answered.

"Since Creass left the station, the staff have changed considerably," Robiah replied with little interest. "It's not surprising."

"Seeal?" Oneakka asked her instead.

She set her spoon down in her bowl. "Jantina was working in Creass' organisation long before Dreamstation was constructed. She loved Dreamstation, and with Creass' departure, the station has been making considerably more money in her industry. If she's left, then something big has happened."

"Someone else probably made her a better offer," Robiah suggested. "She has been at her 'industry' for a long time now."

"Unlikely," Seeal replied. "She's had plenty of 'better' offers over the years."

Her voice had held a mix of intense thought and concern, which made Oneakka guess she had had a friendship of sorts with this Jantina. Whatever it was that was going through her head, she wasn't sharing though, so Oneakka pushed off the wall and moved closer to her chair, silently insisting that she tell him what she was thinking. She didn't look up at him, but her shoulders tensed a little further and he knew she had understood the message.

She sighed theatrically, for his benefit no doubt, as she picked up her porridge spoon again. "There are only two reasons why Jantina would leave Dreamstation - because she was threatened or she's dead."

Robiah looked away slightly and that was enough for Oneakka. "What?" He demanded and the Investigator looked up sharply.

Seeal, believing Oneakka had demanded the order from her, turned to look up over her shoulder with a glare, only to see he wasn't looking at her. Oneakka saw her look back round to Robiah with interest.

Robiah sat back slightly in his seat. "Perhaps her departure has something to do with the stories of dealers disappearing. Jantina has been informing me of several such names over the last couple of months, which I assumed was due to Khor cleaning space for his own Quantum dealing."

Oneakka frowned at him. "So what did you do about it?" He demanded, knowing such intell would have been investigated by Division.

Robiah looked up at him with that cautious silent frown that had annoyed Oneakka so much these past months. Robiah was withholding something significant, and Oneakka just knew this would be the main crux of the reason why Robiah was here in this interrogation room with Seeal.

Well, this time Oneakka wasn't going to let the sideways-walker get away with keeping vital information to himself.

Robiah glanced away, his eyes settling on Seeal for a brief instance, and then finally settled on Teyla. "Two months back, Jantina said she had heard news that a new supplier was clearing space for himself, that he had been responsible for the latest advancements in Quantum. So, I set about sending some of my own contacts out beyond the border, to see if they could find this new player and integrate themselves into his network. I sent out three men over time, the first was found dead a few weeks ago, the second is the one who mentioned Khor's name to me and who I have been unable to contact again. He and the third source had managed to involve themselves, at least in a small way, with the new player, who we now know to be Khor."

"So you have two spies in Khor's dealers?" Teyla asked sternly. "And you are only mentioning this now."

"I haven't been able to make contact with either of them. It's most likely that they're both dead, which is why I didn't mention them before now."

Oneakka just knew there was another reason, because the pieces of this puzzle were coming together now. It explained why Robiah hadn't wanted Seeal captured by them and why he had stayed close when they had.

"Do you have a way of tracking them?" Teyla asked.

Robiah pursed his lips and Oneakka watched the Investigator's gaze slide momentarily back towards Seeal. "No, without Jantina, I have no way to get word to them."

Oneakka had had enough of this tiptoeing around, he knew what the issue was now and he wasn't going to let Robiah run this anymore. He moved around behind Seeal's chair to stand only a metre away from Robiah. "But you have a way to hunt one of them, don't you," he stated. "That's why you're here."

Robiah looked up with studied surprise. "I am here because I wish to help with this new Quantum crisis, Honoured Elite."

"Do you feel guilty for it perhaps?" Teyla asked.

"I sent spies out into a newly establishing network, thin and ghost-like as it was. It is my job, and I have to protect my sources as much as I use them."

"But, you've lost them," Oneakka stated. "And you need help finding them... because one of them is Seeal's brother isn't he?"

Robiah's surprise gave away his guilt immediately, and Oneakka felt a burst of victory. To his left though, Seeal sat up sharply in her seat.

"What?" She demanded.

This was going to be interesting.

"He volunteered," Robiah told her. "And a man with his skills was welcomed into the new network."

"Of course he was welcomed, you idiot," Seeal replied loudly. "He's lived most of his life with scum like Khor; he knows how to play them."

"Which is _why_ I employed him for this mission," Robiah replied. "He is a valuable resource."

Seeal laughed, almost manically at that, and Oneakka glanced at her with interest. That temper of hers looked like it might be about to catch fire again.

"You're such an idiot," she cursed at Robiah. "Why would they accept a man like Ulfur into their secret ghost network? He's not smart, he's weak, and he's full of hatred. And he uses people. Which will be how he got himself into Khor's network – he would have sold you out immediately. No wonder Khor is slipping under your radar – Ulfur will have told him everything about you and your spies."

"You don't know that," Robiah argued. "He has supplied me with valuable information before."

"Because it served him to," Seeal replied loudly. "If you can't get hold of him now, if he isn't dead, then it's because he doesn't have any more use for you." Oneakka wondered if the thought that Ulfur might be dead meant anything to her, despite the clear dislike she had for her sibling. Maybe that was another reason why she was looking at Robiah with such hatred of her own.

"Or something big has changed recently with Khor," Seeal added.

Oneakka traded a look with Teyla and Kari. Haven had happened recently. Could it be as simple as the fact that the new version of Quantum was out?

"Something has changed," Seeal said, having seen their looks. "Jantina left, Ulfur and that other spy stopped talking to Robiah, and..." she paused thoughtfully. "Khor stayed with Creass for several days this week, which he has never done before."

Oneakka turned towards her.

"No, I'm not telling you where Creass is," she replied sternly. "We had a deal on that, and Khor was due to leave the morning I left there to meet with Robiah."

"_I_ didn't include the part about Creass in our deal," Oneakka reminded her equally as forcefully, before he looked to Teyla and Kari. "Khor stays with Creass days after Haven."

"Laying low?" Teyla considered. "Or to make sure the news of Haven hadn't reached Creass."

"We need to find the two spies," Kari put in, "they know where Khor is."

They all turned to Robiah. "I don't know where to find them," he stressed.

"But you hoped Seeal could lead you to Ulfur," Oneakka concluded. "Were you planning to get her out of her punishment on Rosenthal in return for that help?" Like there was any way Oneakka would have let the Investigation Division get away with that.

Robiah didn't reply, but looked at Seeal. "You're his sister, out of everyone in the galaxy you know him the best."

"I don't know him," she spat back, her grip on her still partly filled bowl of rice-meal a little too tight. Oneakka took a subtle step back. If she threw it at Robiah, as he suspected she wanted to do, he didn't want to get any rice-meal on him. "I haven't seen him for _fifteen_ years."

"You've known him the longest then," Robiah replied, his tone conciliatory now, almost pleading. "You know what kind of man he is, where he'll go to hide."

"Hide?" Seeal asked in disbelief. "He doesn't hide, he sidles up to people in power, uses them to save him."

"Who would he use then?" Robiah pushed, having apparently taken control of the interrogation now, but it was helping so Oneakka let it continue for now.

"I don't care," Seeal replied bitterly. "I _never_ want to see him again."

"If you help us," Robiah continued, "then I will do everything I can for you with Rosenthal."

Oneakka frowned at him.

Seeal looked away as if bored the discussion, but Oneakka saw that her grip was still tight on her bowl. "Like you kept your promise over Ulfur before?"

"I promise I will still make sure he gets home," Robiah promised pathetically. "I just needed him for this mission."

"No man can be trusted," Seeal muttered under her breath, but just loud enough for Oneakka to overhear. "You won't ever see him again," she said louder to Robiah. "He's already slipped out of your hands."

"Unless you help us find him," Robiah insisted. "Don't you feel even a little guilty about what happened to him?" It was manipulative and low, but interesting. Oneakka looked down at Seeal, drawn in by the drama despite himself.

Seeal threw the bowl.

Robiah moved just enough in time so that the bowl missed his face and thumped against his shoulder, rice-meal dripped down his shirt and arm as he stood up shocked.

"I was seven cycles old," Seeal shouted as she rose out of her chair. "He was my _big_ brother, in every way, and I was the one that had to steal food for us to survive. I kept us alive while he cursed and spat at me, eating the food I found for us."

She was properly angry, the words flowing out of her mouth with a fierceness that suggested to Oneakka that she hadn't spoken of this before, and it was clearly an old pain, probably fuelled by years of building resentment and fury. Fury which she was now focusing solely on Robiah.

"I protected us while he slipped into drugs and gambling, using the little money I fought for in the pits."

She had been a pit fighter. Oneakka dropped his gaze to her hands. He had seen the small old scars on her knuckles, but had assumed they had been from her days on Dreamstation. Pit fighting was a brutal, bare knuckled illegal fighting system on many worlds, even Alliance ones. Female fighters were particularly prized, especially good fighters, which she had clearly been. It explained her deft fighting skills back on Belsa. She had developed those skills to win food for her and her brother. Despite himself, Oneakka felt more respect for her then. A young seven year old child, protecting her brother on the streets on some unknown planet, growing up to be a pit fighter... He could almost understand how she ended up in Dreamstation now, not that it was any excuse. No wonder Creass had employed her as his bodyguard.

"But he squandered all of it, ruined his life and tried to ruin mine alone with his," she continued to Robiah. "I left him fifteen years ago, and neither of us wanted anything to do with each other _ever_ again."

"But, he's still your brother," Robiah argued back, smelling strongly of rice-meal where he stood facing off with her. "He's either out there about to be another dead body turning up in a field, or we find him and I'll return him to your homeworld."

"Like I trust you," she said laughingly.

"I agreed we would get Ulfur home," Oneakka put in calmly to her.

She looked round at him as if she had forgotten there was anyone else in the room but her, her past, and Robiah.

"And why should I trust _you_?" She asked as if it was the craziest thought in the universe.

"I keep my word," he told her plainly, meeting her gaze – steady and calm.

Her emotions were still racing, powered by years of pain and hurt all bubbling away. It had been Robiah's mention of guilt that had made it all break free though, that sensitive fact that had burst her tightly held control.

"We get Ulfur home and your guilt is clean," Oneakka told her.

She clenched her jaw. "I have no guilt about my brother's choices."

"Except how he got in that situation in the first place," Robiah put in.

"That was not my fault," she insisted, but it wasn't as angry and justified as before to Oneakka's reading of her. She did feel guilty about something, even if she didn't want to.

"But you were the reason," Robiah added. "And now you have a chance to get him home, even if he doesn't deserve it, and I will do what I can with Rosenthal for you."

Seeal turned away, her arms crossing tightly in front of her chest as she sat back down in her chair. The anger wasn't flaring free unrestrained now, she was pulling it tightly back under her control. Oneakka knew what that was like, but he also knew that it would eat away at her for the rest of her life if she didn't deal with it.

"It doesn't matter anyway," Seeal replied, her voice cold and controlled now, but only on the surface, because beneath he could hear the wavering of emotion. From the angle of her head and the tight control of her expression, he suspected she was embarrassed and angry at herself for her outburst. She had again revealed too much of her true motivations, and he bet she never let anyone see her true nature.

"It does matter. We need to find him. If you could think how he would think," Robiah pushed with obviously forced calm, whilst Teyla passed him a cloth to wipe away some of the rice-meal still dripping down him. Oneakka didn't try very hard to hide his smile at the sight. "Predict what he would do."

"He'll go somewhere highly populated, where there are the most people to use," Seeal replied shortly.

"He has no friends on non-Alliance worlds?" Robiah asked.

"I _haven't_ seen him in _fifteen_ years," she repeated. "And I had nothing to do with those he called friends back then." She had an interesting opinion of those past criminals and her brother considering she had worked in Dreamstation of all places.

Though thinking about it, she had spent her youth protecting her brother, only to end up protecting a criminal station as its security lead. Same job, but different. Almost as if psychologically she was proving she could do the job of protecting Ulfur still in watching over Creass and controlling men and women like Ulfur. Oneakka wondered if she realised that about herself. Regardless, it was clear now why she was so insistent, despite herself, to make sure that Ulfur got back home, but what wasn't clear was where home was exactly.

Oneakka turned to Robiah. "Who is her brother? Why would Khor find him useful?"

Robiah pulled his eyes from Seeal as if it was an effort – he really was highly motivated to get this information from her. "He is a very big man, strong, but doesn't-"

"Think?" Seeal interrupted.

"Ask questions," Robiah continued, but nodding at her point.

"A hired thug?" Teyla summarised.

"Of sorts, but not a violent man," Robiah clarified. Oneakka glanced at Seeal out the corner of his eye to see her reaction to that – had Ulfur beat her when she was young? Had that led to her fighting skills? But, he didn't see any reaction from her. He guessed a seven year old Seeal was just as stubborn and strong-willed as the adult version of her. He hoped.

"He will stand out wherever he goes," Robiah continued.

"Then your spies should have found him by now," Seeal replied logically, her voice tight.

"Despite what you think," Robiah told her, "I don't have a massive network of spies beyond the Alliance border. Some close to it, a few further out, but not much else. He should be noticeable, but not if there are no known eyes to see him."

"Why is he noticeable?" Teyla asked. "There are no details on him in your records that you shared."

Robiah looked to Seeal, considering. "He stands out," he replied looking back to Teyla, "because they are Glisi."

Oneakka shared a shocked look with Teyla and Kari, and they all simultaneously looked down at Seeal.

The Glisi were massive, tall giants of people, their shortest women standing at seven feet tall, and their shoulder widths would put Si to shame. They were famous throughout the galaxy, but rarely seen. They kept to their own world, far outside Alliance territory, under their thick sensor-impenetrable forest, where the Wraith rarely ever culled. The planet was locked in an almost constant winter, the temperatures low enough to keep even Wraith away. The Elite had tried to convince the massive people to send their strongest for Elite training a generation ago, but had been turned away. The Glisi, though strong and well adapted to their environment, were highly superstitious, believing that even a naked flame outside in the dark would bring the Wraith upon them. Giving up one or more of their people to fight Wraith openly, they felt would draw the Wraith upon them for sure.

Seeal, if truly a full Glisi and not simply adopted by them, was surely the smallest of their people ever. She was tall for a normal human woman, standing at just about six foot, but clearly was nothing like a Glisi.

Under their mutually surprised looks, Seeal looked up and sighed. "Yes, I am a Glisi," she confirmed, but it was bitter.

Oneakka reconsidered her features. She had the dark hair and eyes of a Glisi, and her wide shoulders and facial features were actually characteristic of the Glisi as well.

"I imagine you were something of a surprise to your family," Teyla said as an understatement.

"You could say that," Seeal replied sarcastically.

"According to Ulfur," Robiah added. "They said she was cursed. Made the family live on the outskirts of the moving camp and no one would talk to them. Their father had to hunt alone, which barely brought in enough food for them. And then one day, the Wraith appeared for a culling, which is rare, but not unheard of on their world. Her and Ulfur's father was killed during the culling, but not by a Wraith. The camp believed she had brought the Wraith down upon them, and she had to leave the planet, and Ulfur was chased off with her."

"They tried to kill us," Seeal clarified.

Oneakka frowned. The massive Glisi warriors tried to kill a seven year old child? He had heard stories in the past that they had killed people who had broken their strict codes, but more often punishment had been excommunication out into the cold snow, which was essentially the same as a death sentence.

"Ulfur blames you for ruining his life," Robiah summarised.

Seeal didn't say anything more to that. She sat arms and legs crossed, and her lips pressed tight together, all her secrets out in the open now.

"I would imagine that a Glisi man would be a very valuable thug for Quantum dealers," Teyla considered. "And, as you say, noticeable to most people. Someone has to have seen him somewhere."

"But where?" Robiah asked. "There are too many planets out there, and that's not counting if Khor does have a ship."

"We could ask Atlantis for assistance," Teyla suggested. "Supply them with a picture of Ulfur. They have plenty of non-Alliance refugees staying in the city, and they have travelled extensively through the Portals."

Robiah nodded and Kari beside them. "I can get an image of him from Division," Robiah agreed.

Oneakka frowned though. There was no guarantee that would work and it would be putting the search solely in Atlantis' hands, which he wasn't too keen to do.

"And if they can't find anything?" He asked.

Teyla frowned. "It is worth trying, there is little else at this juncture.

Seeal shifted slightly in her seat and Oneakka looked down at her. She looked up at him with a pursed considering look. He knew she had thought of something. He lifted an eyebrow at her.

"There may be one way," she suggested thoughtfully.

"What way?" He asked.

"There is a man we could talk to," she suggested. "His skills are only known among a very secure group of people."

"Criminals," Oneakka clarified.

"No," she replied impatiently. "I mean, that only those who have been introduced to him know about him. He lives way beyond Alliance territory, and you've probably never even heard of him. He trades in knowledge only, gaining whispered stories, insights, and knowledge from his vast contacts throughout most of the galaxy, including within the Alliance. It's said that he knows so much, that he even knows when he will die and how. That anything that happens anywhere he will know about within an hour of it happening."

Oneakka pulled a face to show what he thought of that fact.

Seeal shrugged slightly. "Admittedly, that part's probably not true, but he knows more than any other person in the galaxy, even more than the elders on Pelydr."

"And you think he might have seen Khor or Ulfur?" Teyla asked.

"If anyone will know where they are outside Alliance territory, then it's him," Seeal replied.

"Why do I detect there is something to this that I'm not going to like?" Oneakka asked her.

Seeal smiled up innocently, but he could tell that she still was a little off centre following her outburst. "Because he _only_ trades in knowledge, information of your choice for information of his choice in return."

"He'll want Elite secrets?" Kari asked dubiously. "Not going to happen."

"We have no idea what he'll want to know," Seeal replied, "And once you've used his 'service', you'll end up going back to him for more trades in the future."

"How about, we go find him and I'll get what we need out of him," Oneakka suggested.

Seeal smiled though. "You can't just threaten him."

"Watch me," Oneakka replied confidently.

"I mean that just getting to him is nearly impossible, unless you happen to know someone who has traded with him before and therefore knows where he lives and will be let in the front door."

"Elite don't walk in front doors and ask nicely," Oneakka argued.

"He lives in a citadel," Seeal continued, "that's completely impenetrable. The Wraith even leave it alone, and no one has ever broken into his richly filled vaults."

"That's not possible," Kari argued.

"It is if you trade knowledge with thieves," Seeal replied. "Or trade with the best warriors and architects. It's said that in trade he asks thieves to break into his home, thereby sharing their knowledge by testing his defences. He finds every weakness and closes it. He is said to have a vast fortune, gained through having traded only with knowledge, and that he purchased the hill and fort that his citadel sits on in return for one whispered secret."

Oneakka shook his head at her theatrical story.

"So, if you want to find Ulfur and Khor, I think this will be the only way," she concluded.

"Which will also involve us taking you with us," Kari concluded in turn.

"I will have to introduce you to him, in person," Seeal confirmed, her eyes sliding up to meet Oneakka's with a smile. She thought this would be her chance to find a way to escape.

Oneakka stepped up close to her and leant down, as he had last night, and set his hands on the back of her chair, intimidating her. She kept her spine straight and her head up, but her chin pulled in slightly as he hovered threatening over her. He felt a minute moment of regret, for the image of giant Glisi threatening a child came to mind, but she was a grown woman now. A criminal.

"Why should I believe any of this?" He asked her quietly.

"I've heard talk of there being someone like this," Robiah put in. "I haven't been able to get a name or place, or anything specific, but I've heard the stories."

Oneakka ignored his comments. He kept his face close to Seeal's, looking right into her eyes to see the truth for himself.

"If you think I'm going to walk you into one of your criminal friend's homes and let you run away," he told her, "then you are an idiot." He used the insulting term she had used for Robiah, and he saw the flare of her eyes that confirmed she was angry at him using it to describe her.

Her eyes moved from one of his to the other, slipping to his scar and tattoos and then away again. He assumed she understood that he wasn't a man who let things go.

She swallowed despite herself as she met his stare again. "I'm not stupid," she replied. "Why are Elite hunting a Quantum dealer? The only reason would be because the Wraith are involved. As much as I think the Elite are a bunch of self-sacrificing fools, what worries you should worry the rest of us."

Oneakka narrowed his eyes at her insult, but held himself in check. She wouldn't get a reaction out of him at such an obvious baiting comment, which he suspected was in retaliation for him having called her an idiot.

"You wanted a way to find Khor, and maybe Ulfur, and this is the only way I can think of," she said in an annoyingly logical manner. "You can ask Atlantis and any other of your friends out there, but if you want to find someone in the dirt, you've got to ask someone else who's been there."

"That's why I'm asking you," Oneakka replied.

She blinked at the new insult. "And this is my advice. This man will probably have heard something that you can use. But, be prepared that he will want information in return. I don't know what exactly, but it will be his price."

"And if we don't agree to pay it?" Kari asked.

Seeal considered that, her eyes moving to Kari and Teyla past his shoulder. "I have never heard of anyone not agreeing to his terms. That's his power," she said pointedly looking back up at him.

Oneakka looked into her eyes and studied her expression closely, but saw nothing that made him feel she was lying. She was right as well because, for some reason, there was no way to track Khor, and if Ulfur was alive, or even dead, this other man might know something.

"If I take you with us to meet this man," Oneakka told her, "Then it is with the understanding that we had an agreement. If you even try to escape from me, our deal is off, and Ulfur _never_ goes home."

She clenched her teeth, her cheeks and jaw flexing as she no doubt wanted to say she didn't care, but they both knew she did. In her mind, she would still have a chance to escape after she was handed over to Rosenthal, but for now she had a chance to exorcise her guilt over her what was clearly a waste-of-space brother. Unless she decided to start putting herself first over her brother, and Creass, for a change.

"And he and your people will continue to believe that you are a curse upon them," he added.

"You think I worry about what they think?" She asked.

"No," he replied. "It's about what you think."

He knew it was in her, that she wanted to be better than what her brother and people thought she was. Despite her life events and choices, her criminal choices, she had still wanted him to know about her informing on Iketani. That told him that she did care about her moral self, even if it was held together with the thinnest of threads by her belief that she had never committed a crime that she should be punished for. It was her weak logic, but it was clearly strong in her. He suspected it had kept her going for a very long time.

"Prove them wrong," he challenged her.

He could tell immediately that he was right, that he had won, for in an instant her expression turned angry and bitter. She was angry because he had read her correctly, that her own history and values were being used against her.

He stood upright, victory a very real rush through his body.

Teyla stepped up to his side. "I will go to Atlantis, see what they can find out about Ulfur and Khor, hopefully pass the two pictures around their own contacts."

Oneakka nodded.

"We will follow this route," Kari added. "If this man even really exists."

"He exists," Seeal said.

"We should get going," Robiah said almost excitedly from behind Oneakka's shoulder. "I will contact the Division and get the image of Ulfur for you."

"Good," Teyla replied. "We will need to travel through the Portals. We cannot risk taking the Sythus into non-Alliance space alone and it will take too long."

"I can have Division troops ready, no uniforms," Robiah volunteered.

"We will see if they are necessary," Teyla replied. "Warriors from Atlantis might also assist us."

"Only three of us can enter the Citadel," Seeal interrupted. "Two Elite and me, and _not _Robiah."

"Why not?" Robiah objected.

"Because he'll know who you are," Seeal replied.

"According to you, he knows almost everything, and therefore everyone," Robiah argued.

However, Oneakka saw the danger of letting a man like Robiah make contact with this apparent knowledge king. Who knew what Robiah would trade away in the name of the 'greater good' for his work. Besides, Oneakka would have to keep a close eye on Seeal and he didn't want to have to watch Robiah as well in this supposed Citadel.

"You're not coming," Oneakka told Robiah over his shoulder, not bothering to turn round to look at the Investigator. "This is only about this mission, nothing else."

"I can help," Robiah protested.

Oneakka finally turned to face him. "And what do you imagine he will want from you, a Division Investigator, in trade of knowledge? And if you don't give it, then we lose our only likely chance to find out what we need."

Robiah looked like he wanted to argue, but he nodded.

Oneakka turned back to Seeal. "This man, what is his name and on what world will we find him?"

She looked up with her dark eyes, a little bitter still. "His name is Pyaban, and he lives on a world now named after his birth town, Talmedge."

000000  
TBC


	13. Return to Atlantis

**Chapter 13 – Return to Atlantis**

The high beautiful ceilings of Atlantis were almost a welcome sight to Teyla now. Regardless as to what was happening in the galaxy, or even in the auditorium deeper in the city, this massive room remained stunning. To know that the Ancestors had lived in this place, had walked its hallways and had slept in the beds, made it feel almost magical, especially considering that the new occupants of the ancient city were people from an entirely different galaxy. Not one to usually indulge in such romantic thinking, Teyla still found herself further seduced by this grand and stunning city each time she visited.

However, it was duty had had brought her here, and so she strode purposefully across the Ancestral floor towards where Colonel Carter stood waiting. As she approached the blonde city leader, Teyla swept her gaze across the massive room, as always taking in details of guards, weapons, and exits with such long held practice that it was as automatic as breathing for her now. Yet, today, her sweeping assessment was also to seek out one particular face among the many. But he was not here, so she focused all her attention on Colonel Carter.

"Honoured Elite Emmagan," the Colonel greeted her.

"Colonel Carter," Teyla replied, "Thank you for allowing me back into the city."

"Of course," the Colonel replied. "You have some news?" She asked, getting immediately to the point.

"We have a couple of potential leads," Teyla replied. "And I hope that you might be able to help with one of them."

"Why don't we discuss it in my office," the Colonel suggested, indicating the tall staircase behind her.

Teyla nodded her agreement and they proceeded up the wide glitteringly colourful steps. "How are the negotiations proceeding?" Teyla asked.

"They are ongoing," the Colonel replied with a strained smile. "It seems that a few specific details are needing to be precisely debated."

Teyla nodded, but did not mention, what the Colonel no doubt already knew, that such prolonged debating was probably a delaying tactic, since it was likely as common a political technique in her own galaxy as it was in this one. It was likely that Nolfi, and his supporters, would be using such overly detailed debates to waste time and force their opposition to grow so impatient that they would agree to terms they would not normally have. Or perhaps he hoped that such time wasting would force the other parties to grow so frustrated that they would walk out of the talks completely. Teyla suspected that to be Nolfi' ultimate plan.

However, she could not say that to the Colonel. "Hopefully such discussion will proceed quickly," she offered instead as they reached the top of the staircase.

"I hope so too," the Colonel replied as they passed the shining consoles of the city's control room. As they reached the last console, the Colonel paused to ask a quiet question of the man stationed behind it. "Have they finished the talks for today?"

"Yes, Ma'am," the man replied efficiently.

"Can you ask Colonel Sumner and Major Sheppard to join us in my office, and ask the Major to invite Honoured Elite Nalla to join us as well," she ordered politely.

"Yes, Ma'am," he replied and immediately touched his ear radio link. Teyla did not hear the order passed on for she followed the Colonel away towards the short balcony walk to her office.

Teyla did not entirely approve of the Colonel's office in that it had only one exit, but otherwise it was an enjoyable enough space to discuss important matters, and the large wide windows allowed a full view of the Portal space below and the control room along the balcony walk.

As they entered her office, Colonel Carter headed towards the large comfortable seats set away from her desk. "Have you been able to find out anything new about our Sunkaran friend?" The Colonel asked as they sat down in the large seats.

"He is seems inconsequential," Teyla replied as she adjusted her seat to ensure her swords did not press into her back in the high backed soft chair. "We have however discovered others on his homeworld who are deeply involved in the drug trade."

Colonel Carter nodded with interest, but she did not press for further details understanding that Teyla would not be able to supply them. Teyla liked this woman, she understood when to hold to a line and when to press for more. She was clearly an experienced warrior, and had a very clever mind. She sat straight-backed but relaxed in her chair, the posture of a military career, yet with a gentle insistent stillness that Teyla had only ever seen in those who had witnessed a great deal in their lives. Teyla would have enjoyed hearing of the Colonel's life, to share warrior's stories with a female from another galaxy. Yet, the situation would not allow such discussion, but perhaps one day it would be possible.

Movement from outside drew the Colonel's blue eyes away, and Teyla looked round herself at hearing footsteps approaching along the balcony outside. As she looked round, her heart instantly brightened to see John walking towards the office door, Nalla beside him. Just behind them, Madesh stood waiting in the control room, looking more confident than Teyla had seen him before.

"Emmagan," Nalla greeted as soon as she and John entered.

"Nalla," Teyla replied with a smile, which she then turned to John. She knew it would be foolish to imagine she could conceal her emotional reaction at seeing John from Nalla's sensing skills, but she still tried to present herself as only a friendly acquaintance. "Major Sheppard."

"Hi," John replied with part smile, though his eyes were bright.

Teyla could not help herself glancing at Nalla then, but saw nothing in her Pelydrian colleague's expression that indicated what she was picking up from her and John.

"You found something useful?" John asked, standing slightly aside, thereby indicating to Nalla without words that she should have the remaining free seat.

"Some, but sadly not much," Teyla replied to him, making sure her voice was even.

"Colonel Sumner should be with us shortly," Colonel Carter added, a subtle dressing down or warning to John that he was to wait for his inline superior to join them before asking anything further. Teyla watched John nod, agreeing on the surface, but she sensed the impatience in him, no doubt mentally willing the less agreeable Colonel Sumner to arrive faster.

In the following short pause, Teyla turned to Nalla to fill the moment, for she sensed Colonel Carter was about to ask something mundane to fill the silence and she knew John would not be able to remain quiet for very long. The only time he remained silent in her experience was when he was sleeping, and he always looked particularly handsome when doing so.

Teyla quickly focused on Nalla. "Have you managed to gain anything new from the Sunkaran prisoner?"

"No," Nalla replied, adjusting her hips on the soft chair so that a knife's hilt did not press into her. "Did Oneakka capture his prize?"

"Yes," Teyla replied with a smile. "He is understandably pleased. She has provided some very valuable information already."

"I trust she will have far more," Nalla replied. "I look forward to reading her, to gauge for Oneakka the depth of her confession."

Teyla nodded, though that had not occurred to her. Seeing Seeal's emotional outburst earlier had proven an honesty of emotion that could not be faked. Not unless Robiah had been involved in setting up the scene, which he clearly had not been. The sight of Robiah dripping in rice-meal porridge had clearly amused Oneakka.

To her left, John shifted his position, and she looked towards the door to see the strongly built Colonel Sumner enter the office.

"Colonel," John greeted his superior.

"Colonel Sumner," Colonel Carter greeted him in turn. "Thank you for joining us," she added a beat later, which may have been a second subtle dressing down of her staff in as many minutes.

"We had another small incident in the east pier," Sumner explained, clearly not appreciating having to do so in front of her and Nalla.

"Anyone hurt?" Carter asked him.

"No, but I think the sooner the Alliance delegation leaves the city, the better it will be for our other 'friends'," he replied, his gaze shifting to Teyla and then to Nalla.

Teyla chose to ignore the man as much as possible, and returned her full attention to Colonel Carter.

"We have discovered the identity of two men who are involved in the new version of Quantum," she began, pulling out her pad and tapping up the two images. "The one on the left is named Khor, who we believe is involved in the production of the new Quantum. The other man is named Ulfur, who may be involved in dealing the new drug."

Colonel Carter took the pad and studied the two men. "I don't recognise either of them."

"We believe they are hiding somewhere far outside Alliance territory," Teyla reported. "We need to find them as quickly as possible, and it is my hope that you might be able to show their faces to those in the city, and to any other contacts you have on non-Alliance planets."

Colonel Carter passed the pad to Colonel Sumner who frowned down at the faces and tapped through the attached information on the men.

"And you think these men are working for the Wraith?" Sumner asked, his attention mostly on the pad.

"It is unclear whether the Wraith have employed worshippers to assist them to move the new Quantum into the open market or not," Teyla replied.

John, who received the pad next, frowned down at it. "Is this right? Ulfur's seven foot two?"

"Yes," Teyla replied, glancing at him, but not for too long. "Ulfur is from a race of people all of similar height, named the Glisi."

"You'd think he'll stand out in a crowd," John joked.

"Yes, indeed," Teyla replied with a faint smile before looking away from him before she might say anything less informal to him. "The sooner we can find these men, the better for all of us."

"The better for the Alliance," Sumner commented.

"For all of us," Nalla stressed. "If the Wraith have successfully adapted the drug to aid them to read human minds fully, then every human everywhere will be at risk."

"Where do you think we'll likely find these men?" Colonel Carter asked.

"We do not know," Teyla admitted, annoyed at that fact. "However, other Elite are currently pursuing another line of inquiry that may provide far more detailed information."

"We can't visit every planet and moon out there," Sumner said to Colonel Carter

"We can at least start asking those currently living in the city," she replied, "And we would be happy to send out a some teams to start asking our trading partners off world."

"That would be appreciated," Teyla replied.

"Hopefully someone in the city will recognise one of them," John added positively.

"We can assist in such interviews," Nalla offered.

"I'm not sure that those in the east pier would respond well to the Elite asking them questions," Colonel Carter said tactfully.

"Elite are not the Alliance Military," Teyla pointed out, knowing that Elite were still respected well beyond the border.

"These people might not see such a clear distinction," Colonel Carter replied though. "To them, the Elite are the most obvious sign of your military and the Alliance itself."

Teyla sighed lightly, but nodded her agreement, despite her growing sense of frustration. Everything they tried at the moment seemed to lead to more obstacles. "How soon can the interviews proceed? This is of high importance."

"We will start showing these faces around the east pier immediately," Colonel Carter replied, "and I'll look into sending out some teams as soon as possible." She looked up to Colonel Sumner. "We should be able to free a few teams."

"Two maybe," Sumner replied. "Most of our resources are focused on watching the negotiations and keeping the east pier peaceful.

"What about using some of the science teams?" John suggested. "To safe worlds."

Colonel Sumner frowned. "I'll need to vet which ones go."

"I can take my team to a couple of planets now," John offered.

"I would have thought you'd want to get some rest after the negotiations, Major," Colonel Carter asked with a smile.

"To be honest, it'll be nice to get out of the city for a bit, stretch my legs," John joked back. Teyla smiled, allowing her eyes to linger on his features for a moment longer. The soft bright lighting of Atlantis was most flattering upon his already attractive face.

"If we pick our best well known allies," Colonel Sumner considered, "then we should be able to canvas a large number of people quickly enough."

Colonel Carter nodded. "Draw up a list of the best worlds, and we'll send the teams we have now, as well as utilising the security details in the east pier to pass these faces round to those staying with us."

Teyla felt Nalla's attention on her and met at her colleague's violet gaze. Nalla seemed impressed, which pleased Teyla. Those in Atlantis were efficient warriors and willing to assist on such vitally important matters.

"We can assist as required," Nalla added, looking up to Colonel Sumner and John.

"We don't want to scare any of our allies by turning up with Elite warriors," Sumner replied immediately, but his tone was not quite as rude and stern as Teyla had expected.

"Are you going to show these faces around your own delegation?" John asked.

"Yes," Nalla replied with a definite nod up at him. Teyla felt a shift of something in her middle at seeing Nalla's pretty violet eyes looking up at John.

Nalla looked at her.

Teyla quickly looked away to Colonel Carter. "Thank you for your assistance in this matter."

"We're happy to help," she replied, "and as you rightly said, Honoured Elite, what affects the Alliance with regard to the Wraith, affects all of us. Maybe in working to this common goal, we can again prove how well we can work together."

Teyla nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly with the Colonel's statement, Si' unexpected words from last night lingering in her mind.

"The guest quarters you were assigned before you left are still available," Colonel Carter continued, "if you'll be staying with us?"

Teyla thought she heard the subtlest shift in John's stance.

"I will stay to learn what you have found," Teyla replied, suspecting John would be pleased to hear her answer. She hoped she would be able to find time to be alone with him, even if for only a brief visit, in which to enjoy his company again. Each time they parted ways, she always wondered if she would see him again, and yet, so frequently of late, they nearly always met up again quickly enough. However, once Oneakka and Kari reported back from Talmedge she would likely be leaving again too soon, and once there was a lead on Khor or Ulfur, then she could be away from Atlantis for some time to come. As such, she hoped very much to gain some time alone with John, before her duties took her away from him again.

"We'll let you know what we find," the Colonel added, a clear closure of the meeting.

"Thank you," Teyla replied as she and Nalla stood. She moved around the chairs to leave, brushing close by John on her way out, but she didn't look up at him, yet she was acutely aware of his scent as she left the office.

Ahead, Madesh was stood with the Atlantis ambassadors, Mr Woolsey and Mr Faxon, both likely waiting to report their day's deliberations with Colonel Carter. Both men nodded politely to Teyla and Nalla as they approached, wishing them greetings and a good evening. Teyla nodded back and headed for the exiting stairs out of the control centre, a uniformed Atlantis warrior waiting for them. The man recognised Nalla for he smiled at her, but held back to follow them down the stairs, Madesh behind Nalla.

"How are things?" Teyla asked Nalla in a quiet voice, but not too quiet as to be appearing deceitful.

"Much the same as before I understand," Nalla replied as they reached the bottom of the staircase and turned through an open doorway into a busy corridor. Teyla had walked this route many times over the last days and as such found she did not need to think overly hard as to where to turn. Their guard seemed relaxed and at ease at their back. "It is much as we expected, Nolfi in particular is causing considerable disruption."

"He means to delay or break apart the treaty talks," Teyla muttered.

"I agree," Nalla replied. "Those working with him are as predicted. Though, he has taken far too much interest in our investigation of the Sunkaran prisoner."

Teyla sighed. "I suppose it was too much to ask that he neglect to notice that."

"I made it clear that the matter of was strictest Elite importance," Nalla replied as they headed for a metal staircase, choosing it over the internal transporter systems of the city.

"Has he asked further questions?"

"Only to ask if we had any new information."

"Do you think he is in anyway involved?"

"No," Nalla replied immediately and Teyla felt a burst of disappointment.

Nalla chuckled. "It would be too useful and coincidental for him to know of this new investigation."

"Sometimes it would be nice for matters to be so clear," Teyla replied.

"I agree, but we both know that is unlikely. Though the capture of Oneakka's prisoner has been very fortuitous."

"Yes, though she does not have any precise information to give us, she has supplied a possible lead that could bring us the information we require," Teyla told her carefully, and Nalla nodded. They could not speak entirely freely in Atlantis, even if they were in an isolated room which they had scanned. Seeal had been very careful with Pyaban's name, and instinctively Teyla decided to do the same. If the Elite were to work with this man, if he was as all-seeing as Seeal proclaimed, then it was important that Alliance knowledge was carefully controlled. Teyla imagined Colonel Sumner would be quick to ask for information on them from Pyaban if he were to meet with him.

"What of those two men you showed to Colonel Carter?" Nalla asked.

"Khor," Teyla confirmed, "is the one behind the new generation. Ulfur is Seeal's estranged brother, whom Robiah planted as an informant into Khor's newly growing network. Robiah has lost contact with him, and it is possible that he is dead, as another one of his planted spies has been killed, but if not, then he will have direct knowledge of Khor's whereabouts."

Nalla nodded. "Which explains Robiah's interest in Seeal's capture. We are hoping then that she will lead us to Ulfur?"

"Hopefully, though she is quite unwilling to see her brother again. We must find Ulfur, for if he is alive, then he can lead us directly to Khor and then hopefully to the Wraith involved."

"Mmm," Nalla reflected. "Luck has not been on our side in this endeavour so far."

"I agree," Teyla replied with another sigh. "There is something very wrong about that. For this Khor to go so unseen and leaving barely any trace is unusual."

"If he is operating well outside our territory then that is not highly unusual."

"True, but it concerns me that perhaps there is a new rise of worshippers, as there was before."

Nalla nodded with a frown. "It is possible, and a likely technique of the Wraith considering our repeated victories over them."

"We know they are consolidating their Hives, attacking outlying planets that we are soon to encompass into the Alliance, and how better than to spy and manipulate than through a new collection of worshippers," Teyla summarised. "Just as before, when the second wave of the Alliance was almost prevented."

"Those worshippers had been built up over centuries by the Wraith," Nalla argued. "Very few worlds now could remain free of awareness of what the Wraith are and what they do."

"It would only take one planet, its populace controlled and developed as zealous followers of the Wraith to form an army of worshippers again," Teyla pointed out.

It had been a dark day for the young Alliance when it had had to forcefully repel the Wraith's worshipper armies, forced to kill humans that had been indoctrinated to believe the Wraith to be gods. They had stood between Wraith and the newly formed Military, and the decision had been made to consider them enemies. Many had been killed, but many also saved. Yet, those who had been captured had needed to be imprisoned, for their beliefs of the Wraith as their gods had been destructive and often violent. It worried Teyla that another such incidence could occur. She did not think she could make that decision herself - to kill humans along with Wraith.

"If such an event did occur again, we would have more evidence and tools to control them than they had back then," Nalla noted.

Teyla nodded. "Let us hope so."

They had reached the level of the guest quarters, but they continued on, heading further into the city to meet with the other Elite who were watching over the delegation.

If Oneakka and Kari were successful then a call to battle would hopefully arrive in the next few hours, and they would need to be ready to leave. The other Elite here needed briefing and a plan of action discussed on who would head out with her and Nalla when the call to battle would hopefully arrive. When they found out where Khor was hiding, it would be vital to strike hard and fast, and without being able to bring the Sythus so far into non-Alliance territory, they would need Atlantis' help. Hopefully their vessel, the Daedalus, could assist, and maybe even John could fight at her back with his people.

She had almost missed wading into a fight with him close by.

00000000

When she had said Pyaban lived in a citadel, Oneakka had predicted a defensive wall, probably brick, with a couple of watchtowers, set around a few buildings, maybe a castle.

He hadn't expected an actual massive citadel with stone walls that stretched around an entire hillside. There were watchtowers set every few hundred yards along the towering wall, all clearly active defensive stations judging by the glint of sunlight on weaponry that was far too advanced for the planet. The buildings inside the citadel looked tightly packed together, their tall well kept roofs of varying shapes and colours, all appearing well constructed and stable. At the top of the rise, set into the centre of the hillside, there sprawled a wide low building with domed roofs and tall towers. Even from outside the citadel's walls, Oneakka could see that the building was well maintained, its panels shining in the sunlight and tall trees swayed around its lower roofs.

"See," Seeal stated, "and you doubted me."

Oneakka held back his opinion on that comment, as he swept his scrutinising gaze over the citadel. The walls were highly defended; he counted at least five men in each of the closest towers overlooking the massive gateway. The thick metal citadel gates were as massive as the walls, and were currently stood open, allowing entrance for the local inhabitants. There were twenty guards stood in a line across the entrance, talking to every individual who wanted to enter the citadel. There was no sense of caution or tension in the surrounding civilians though, which suggested that such security was normal.

"I do not like this," Kari stated from Oneakka's left and he nodded in agreement.

Seeal looked back at them over her shoulder. They had returned her original clothes to her, now thoroughly washed to remove any chemical trace or hidden substance, and the hidden compartments in the heels of her boots had been permanently filled. She had given him a frowning look as she had pulled the boots back on, obviously having instantly felt the change in their weight. He suspected she knew they had fixed a locator in one of the heels. Her hairband had been kept though, and instead a length of easily broken lace fabric had been given to her with which she had secured up her long hair into a tightly woven mass at the back of her head. He suspected the lace would collapse under such weight, but it had yet to give way, annoyingly.

"Talmedge is peaceful enough," Seeal repeated. "The security are Pyaban's own, and they're well chosen."

"Chosen for what characteristics?" Kari asked pointedly.

"They don't have itchy trigger fingers," Seeal clarified with a tone that implied she was talking with anxious children. Oneakka was tempted to glare at her in warning, but preferred to continue his assessment of the citadel.

"Triggers of Alliance weapons," he pointed out.

"Mmm, I've noted Genii, Litan, and Xinda weapons so far," Kari agreed and Oneakka nodded.

"One Rosenthal wide range gun on the left gateway tower," he added and Kari looked up through the bright sunshine of Talmedge towards the tower in question.

The stonework of the citadel's wall as entirely uniform and there wasn't even a tiny smudge of dirt anywhere that Oneakka could see. It was either a very new wall, that Talmedge had only clement weather, or it was regularly cleaned and maintained. He suspected the later, but imagined it would be a strange boring job to do so. It was likely that there were many job opportunities for people in Talmedge if it was true.

"This is wrong," he stated out loud.

"Pyaban will be fine," Seeal replied over her shoulder. "He won't want to make trouble with the Elite."

"I mean this place," Oneakka replied to Kari more than her. "Such a big population behind secure and well kept walls. Wraith do not let this happen outside our territory."

Kari nodded. "Wraith worshipper?" She considered.

Seeal looked round at her. "Hardly, he lost most of his family to the Wraith. Until he built this place, Talmedge was frequently culled."

"But it isn't any more," Oneakka reiterated.

Seeal glanced at him over her other shoulder. "Rumours say he has people who protect the planet, that there's technology in orbit, but no one knows for sure."

"Of course someone knows," Oneakka argued. "Just not people like you."

"Or you," Seeal responded as she looked back up to the towering citadel.

"We should enter another way," Kari suggested.

"There is only one way in," Seeal replied.

"Wrong," Oneakka objected.

"There is only one way in for us," she clarified.

"Also wrong," Oneakka replied.

Seeal turned fully round to face him, the thin links of the restraint lead, connecting the shackle around her right wrist to the clip on his belt, clinking in the shiny summer's day. "We're here to ask to trade for information. The only way to do that is to walk in the front gates and have him invite us to meet with him."

Oneakka frowned at the distant central building of the citadel which would obviously be Pyaban's home. Elite were not made to wait quietly.

"If you bust in there, guns blazing," Seeal continued, "we won't get what we came for."

"We?" Oneakka noted, still not looking directly at her. He was instead examining the closest watchtowers overlooking the gates. There was more movement inside them and several faces were peering out into the light – He and Kari had been noticed and no doubt Pyaban would be informed soon enough.

"You wanted my advice on getting to Khor, _this_ is it," Seeal stated before turning away again to face the citadel and thereby turning her back to him. Oneakka almost smiled at her childishness.

"She is regrettably right," Kari said. "If we are to move forward with this plan, then being polite with this man seems the most likely route to bring us what we need."

Oneakka frowned. The faces in the towers were less obvious now, they were waiting. Well, Oneakka could wait all day.

"We wait here," he stated.

"We need to go in and present ourselves to the court clerk of Pyaban," Seeal repeated her plan from earlier.

"Pyaban has Elite standing outside his gate," Oneakka replied. "He'll respond to that, if what you believe about him is correct."

Seeal didn't have a response to that, which was new. Oneakka was almost tempted to point that out to her, but restrained himself – it was clear enough he had won that verbal battle.

"I can't go in there wearing this," Seeal said after a pause, lifting her right arm enough to jangle the restraining line as if it might annoy him.

"You can," he responded simply. She had objected, as expected, when he had secured the shackle around her wrist. As he had clipped the other end of the lead to his belt, he had seen her studying the belt and clip carefully, probably also calculating in his bodyweight versus her own, and had finally fallen into a bitter silence on the subject.

A new face suddenly appeared up in the right-hand watchtower, looking directly down at them. Oneakka looked directly up at the face, making sure they could see he was watching them in turn. The new face pulled back immediately.

"If you want me to introduce you to Pyaban, I can't appear coerced," Seeal argued.

"You are coerced, even if you weren't restrained," Oneakka pointed out, sliding his attention down to the guards across the entranceway. Two were in discussion to one side and they glanced across the loose sea of people to where Oneakka and Kari stood with Seeal.

"It won't be sending the right message to Pyaban," Seeal attempted next.

"He wants to trade information, what does it matter to him?" Kari asked.

A new guard appeared in the shadow of the right-hand gate and joined the two in discussion.

"We agreed that I wouldn't attempt to escape and you get Ulfur home," Seeal said firmly.

Oneakka finally pulled his attention from the citadel's guards and looked directly at her. "I didn't hear you say those words," he reminded her. She had agreed with a nod and silence.

"I will not try to escape," she stated.

He glared at her. "_Try_ to escape?" He knew her game, some wording change and she could see herself free of her agreement, just as she did her liability with Creass.

"We had an agreement," she repeated.

"I don't trust you," Oneakka told her clearly.

She didn't respond straight away, only confirming his prediction on her plans to escape. "Then why make the agreement in the first place?"

He looked away to the guards again. "Because you want Ulfur to go home, and we need you to cooperate."

"I am cooperating," she replied, gesturing to the citadel.

"Where you will no doubt have plenty of potential opportunities to escape."

"Then Ulfur won't go home," she logically followed through.

"You're trusting that, because we are Elite, we will see he gets home anyway, because we agreed to," Oneakka told her, looking back at her, right into her angry brown eyes.

She pulled a face. "As if I expect _you_ to be in any way honourable." She turned away again, showing him her back.

"Can't we just gag her until we get to Pyaban?" Kari asked.

Oneakka had thought about it. "A shackle line is one thing, walking her in gagged would be as much as a threat to him."

Seeal kept her head forward, though no doubt had something to say about that.

Up ahead, the three guards moved out of the line and, in a precise arrow formation, proceeded through the crowd towards them.

"You were right," Kari noted.

"There is one thing I should also mention about Talmedge," Seeal said without looking round.

He had just known there would be something she would leave to the end to mention.

Oneakka sighed loudly enough that it was almost a growl of a question.

The guards was moving closer, their hands resting on the hilts of sheathed swords, but the hold looked more ceremonial, not a grip ready to draw the weapon.

"Talmedge is under Pyaban's supervision, but anyone is welcome here. There might be some inside who'll take objection to you being here. Don't expect Pyaban's hospitality to extend to protecting you from others visiting the citadel."

"We should have gagged her," Kari muttered under her breath as the guards' arrow stopped two metres in front of them.

"What is your business in Talmedge?" The lead guard asked, his helmet shining in the sunlight.

"We seek to trade with Pyaban," Seeal answered, as had been agreed.

"You are known here, I believe?" The guard asked.

"I am," she replied. "I seek to introduce some new...friends...to trade with Pyaban."

Oneakka knew the guards had noticed the restraint line long before now, but the lead guard focused on it clearly now, before looking at Kari and finally at Oneakka.

"Pyaban invites you to meet with him," he intoned formally and then turned and the arrow moved back towards the citadel's gates.

Oneakka looked over to Kari and smiled. She frowned.

They followed the guards, Seeal walking slightly in front as usual, where Oneakka could best keep watch on her. As if he would turn his back to her for a second.

The wide entranceway to the citadel opened up into an equally wide street that stretched all the way up towards Pyaban's central fortress, for want of a better word. Along the long central street, market stalls and blossom trees lined the way. Everyone was dressed in well made brightly coloured clothes. Everyone looked well fed and unafraid. There were a lot of frowns though and some people quickly disappeared from view as Oneakka and Kari were noticed, but there were also a lot of interested curious faces lining the street.

The place held the sense of wealth, luxury, and peace. It was not right in Wraith held territory.

Ahead of him, Seeal strode forward almost to the fullest extent of the shackle line. She walked with her head held high, her shoulders back and relaxed, but it was clear that a sense of forced composure was now in place, which he recognised from when he had first seen her on Dreamstation. She walked as if she were not a prisoner, that she was the one welcomed in the citadel, not them. She did not swing her hips or backside as she walked, as many women with a sense of power were want to do, instead she strode forward like a confident free agent.

He slowed his step a fraction, just enough for her to feel the pull of the restraint line, and her arm was pulled back slightly. She didn't look round, didn't alter her step, but her walking speed slowed somewhat. Just a reminder of who was in control of this situation.

The closer they got to the central fortress, the larger the blossom trees outlying the street became, which signified that they had been here the longest. Pyaban had likely started in the centre of the hillside and had spread his reach outwards to eventually establish the citadel.

The entrance to the fortress itself was accessed by an extremely steep set of stone steps set in a tall surrounding wall, which was strategically clever. As they climbed the steps it was only when they reached the uppermost steps that the actual entrance to the fortress came into view, along with its excessive security. Two heavy duty Rosenthal wheeled guns were pointed out across the citadel stretching out below, and there were five guards behind each. Oneakka suspected there were not usually so many, that these had been sent here as a show of strength for him and Kari. The outermost guards looked a little winded, like they had hurried to their station, despite their straight backs and well held stern expressions.

The actual access into the fortress was very narrow consisting of a single heavily carved wooden door which opened to reveal a young woman dressed in a long blue dress. She bowed deeply as they approached. "Welcome," she greeted politely before turning round and disappearing into the fortress. The guards all stood aside, leaving them to be escorted alone inside by the lone female guide.

It was dark inside, the change in light sudden and no doubt intended, for there were only solid walls on either side of them, forming a long solid narrow corridor which could be excellently defended. Oneakka was quite impressed with Pyaban's citadel so far.

The corridor opened up into a wide dark wood panelled room, inside of which stood two guards, hands casually but pointedly resting on the hilts of their swords. The woman guided them up a low flight of stairs and down another narrow corridor. The scent of blossoms lingered in the air along with the heavy scent of natural oil which Oneakka suspected had been rubbed into the clean dark wooden floorboards under their boots.

Behind him, he heard Kari's pad bleep several warnings of recording devices. He trusted she would jam them, as he would also do on another frequency once in the room with Pyaban.

The corridor led to another antechamber, with two guards stood to either side again, but there were also several other people inside, all sat along one wall, as if waiting in a queue. Oneakka suspected they had just been shoved down the list to see Pyaban.

He and Kari were led straight through the waiting antechamber and into yet another corridor. By Oneakka's estimation they were now well inside the hillside itself. The corridor turned faintly right, through yet another room of waiting people, and finally turned sharply to the left, bringing them to a set of wide dark doors with red handles. Two guards in darker uniforms reached out and pulled open the doors, revealing a large room which the woman gestured them to enter.

There was no one waiting inside, but Oneakka could smell fragrant tea and blossoms again. There was a table to one side, which supported the tea and a selection of small pieces of food. The room was outlined in rich fabrics hung along the walls and down from the ceiling. To the left there were thick dense sitting cushions spread across the floor, and in front of them two long benches covered with thick plush brightly coloured cushions. More overt luxury and wealth.

There were two more doors into the room, one which was obscured behind some of the wall hangings, but Oneakka had noticed it from the slight draught stirring the fabric. The other doorway was open and set under an elaborate archway, through it a man now stepped into view.

He was bald, his head shining, and his eyebrows were so pale as to appear absent. His shoulders were wide, as was his middle. Around his neck he wore several long gold chains with various sparkling charms hanging from them, the loops reaching down to his slightly portly belly. He was dressed in a pink long coat, over orange trousers and red sandals beneath. There was an extreme amount of gold embroidery across his coat, and he wore several thick jewelled rings on each hand. He moved further into view with a calm pace of one at home and not appearing in the least concerned at Elite visiting his citadel.

He stopped on the far side of the cushioned benches and smiled, his eyes clearly intelligent and bright.

"Seeal, it is a great pleasure to see you again," he began.

"And you Pyaban," she replied, inclining her head slightly, confirming the man's identity.

Pyaban inclined his head in return. "A woman as beautiful as you is always welcome in my citadel," he added. "To visit, to join my security force," the job offer was hardly subtle, "or to bring new trading friends."

Pyaban finally turned all his attention to Oneakka and Kari.

"May I present to you," Seeal stated, stepping to her right so that Pyaban had an unobstructed view of them, her shackle line tightening behind her as she did. "Elite warriors, Kari," she indicating Kari first, which was a far more subtle insult from her. "And...?" She paused and looked at him pointedly.

Amused that she had not overheard his name, as he had intended, Oneakka stepped forward, thereby wrapping the restraint line further around her. "Oneakka," he stated.

"Ah," Pyaban replied with an almost sigh of pleasure. "I thought as much."

Oneakka looked at him directly in the eyes, letting nothing show, except to make it clear that he was not going to be impressed by cheap theatrics. As if a man with Pyaban's reputation, if Seeal was being truthful, would not have a list of all the Elite, and Oneakka was obviously the most easily identifiable.

"I had always hoped a day would come when I could share my services with the Honoured Elite of the Alliance," Pyaban said as he moved forward between the two benches and sat down on one. "Though I had not expected it to be in quite this manner." He added, chuckling, as he looked to Seeal. "I imagine Creass with be quite distressed to learn of your capture, my dear."

"Which you are going to sell to him?" Seeal asked directly.

Pyaban shook his head. "Now, why would I do that? When I still hope that you might join my own guard?"

"If you could see a way to trading me out of Elite hands..." Seeal suggested.

"I have my limits, my dear," Pyaban replied and looked away to Kari. "I imagine though, that you wish to trade for something far more valuable."

"We hear talk that you know almost everything that happens," Kari asked with clear doubt in her tone.

"Not everything sadly," Pyaban replied. "But, in all things in this life, I believe that knowledge is all that we can truly collect and what gives us power and importance."

"Do you know a large waistline leads to illness?" Oneakka asked, to see what would happen.

Pyaban smiled. "I gather knowledge, however choice is something far different."

"I would say choice is more important than knowledge," Seeal put in.

Pyaban looked at her with a somewhat fatherly smile. "You would, my dear. But, one could argue that choices can only be made once you have knowledge first. How are you to make a decision, make your choice, if you do not first _know_ the choices before you?"

"We didn't come here for philosophy," Oneakka told him.

"No," Pyaban replied, "I imagine Elite have no time for such things."

It was possibly an insult, and one perhaps in response to Oneakka's comment on his waistline.

"Elite focus on the hunt," Pyaban continued, "Always on the mission and with single focus, no?"

"Would the answer be information you would want to trade for?" Kari asked.

Pyaban chuckled. "Many who come in here are more easily ready to surrender such knowledge without realising, but I should know better than that from the Elite. No, let us set our terms and see if we can trade."

Oneakka narrowed his eyes at him.

"We seek the location of two men," Kari stated. "Men we are hunting and who we believe are in non-Alliance territory." She pulled out her pad and extended it out towards Pyaban.

He glanced at the photos for a second and looked away. "Their names please."

"Khor and Ulfur," Kari replied.

Pyaban looked up towards the ceiling and tapped his bejewelled fingers together. "To think I have found a day where I can trade with Elite." He looked back down from the fabric covered ceiling and looked back at Kari. "Now, for what I want in trade for the information I may have."

He looked at Oneakka and then Seeal, considering. He stood up from his bench and tucked his hands behind his back, his face one of happily consideration. He was enjoying this.

Oneakka resisted the impulse to use his usual method of encouraging people to give information he wanted. He would keep that option as backup.

Pyaban turned and walked back the other way in front of the benches. "I had thought I knew what I would want in trade, but I find myself considering something else. For information of two men, I expect to trade two things in return," he stated as he turned back to them.

Oneakka frowned, but nodded.

Pyaban smiled and looked back up to the ceiling again, the soft light glowing through the fabrics on his happy face.

"The first I ask for is, the current location of the Wraith's strongest of strongholds," he stated.

Oneakka was surprised by that one. He nodded their agreement.

"The man known as Khor," Pyaban replied. "The paler sterner man in your pictures, I have nothing to offer other than having heard his name in the systems closest to the centre of the galaxy. He seems to prefer to use a network in that area."

It was little, but had perhaps narrowed the search field down – still to hundreds of options, but it was far less than before.

Pyaban looked at them expectantly.

Oneakka glanced at Kari. She tapped away on her pad and held up a map of stars. "This area, the hives are gathering," she informed him.

It wasn't all that risky of information to share, and was of no concern to the Elite if others knew of it. Oneakka wondered how much Pyaban could trade for such information among those who were at risk from the Wraith.

"For the second man," Pyaban continued, his eyes sliding to Seeal. He knew who Ulfur was to her. "I have far more to offer, including where he is likely to be currently working."

Oneakka controlled his relief and expectation at hearing that. There was still no guarantee of the information being useful, but it would be the first real intell they had had so far.

Pyaban looked directly at Oneakka. "And in trade, I want something that only Elite can offer. Something simple enough." He turned away and moved back to the cushion on the bench he had used before. He sat down, his hands crossed and he smiled. "I want to know a moment."

Oneakka frowned at that unclear comment.

"A moment that you witnessed, everything about it, and then I will tell you all I know about how to find Ulfur."

"A moment?" Kari asked.

"Yes, just one moment, but everything about it."

"That seems to be more than one piece of information," Kari argued.

"It is a single moment in return for the vital information you apparently need. This is my request and you are free to _choose_," he glanced at Seeal with emphasis, and then back to Kari, "if you wish to trade, it is your choice, we do not have to trade any more than we already have."

Kari moved in Oneakka's vision and he glanced at her. Kari was as suspicious as he was, but they needed the information. They looked back at Pyaban.

He smiled, his cheeks red and flushed with his clear enjoyment. "Excellent," he uttered. "I wish to know the details of the last moment of the ex-Elite, turned traitor, known as Iketani."

Oneakka had not expected that, and he narrowed his eyes at the highly decorated man. "Why?"

"What does it matter to you?" Pyaban replied. "It is something I do not know, and I wish to. I do hate holes in my knowledge, though admittedly it is a fact of life that there will be many. However, in this particular moment, I have the means to complete my knowledge."

"What do you know of The Traitor?" Oneakka asked.

"You would be surprised how much I know," Pyaban replied. "Perhaps you would wish to trade to some of it, Honoured Elite. I understand that you are most interested in her escapades over the years before her death. I had heard she was killed, which was not the greatest surprise to those of us who know the skill and determination of your number, but I do not know where, how she died, who was there, and who struck her down."

Oneakka frowned deeply. There didn't seem much that could be exposed in this information, but it was to whom Pyaban might sell such information that concerned Oneakka. Was there someone waiting out, primed by Iketani to act in a devious way when her death was confirmed?

Kari moved closer to his left. "I do not see the huge harm that could come from such trade. Worth the risk for what we seek," she said very quietly.

Oneakka thought about it a little longer, aware of Pyaban and Seeal's attention on him, but uncaring of their weight.

He nodded his agreement to her and Pyaban.

Pyaban nodded in response. "Good. Tell me of her end, Honoured Elite, paint the moment for me."

Oneakka faced the man and watched him carefully. "It was on the planet Milioc Primary, in the sandy dry dirt where she belonged, that she was slain by a blade in a battle of blood vengeance."

"Who's kin?" Pyaban asked.

"An Elite whose mate and their unborn young had been murdered by Iketani' servants acting in her name," Oneakka replied, though not mentioning Massa's name directly.

The memories of that fateful day stirred sharply in his mind, recalling the dry heat of Milioc Primary, the sun sinking low and bright across the sand, Massa striding out of the light to demand his right to fight Iketani. The shock and grief of Massa's revelation of his lost unborn young, an Elite child that had never had a chance to live, and the desperate anger and justified determination in his eyes. The sand had been stained by his and Iketani' blood as they had fought, two raging creatures in the sinking sun, blades flying in sharp turns and slices, muscles, knees and bone cut. Blood pouring from Massa's arm, ruined from full future battle use, but his free hand had sunk the knife up into Iketani' middle, halting her life, her own intended death strike, and all the deception she had wrought.

And afterwards, Oneakka had watched as Massa, knelt in the dirt, had cried silent tears for all he had lost.

Oneakka had known that feeling, the victory borne out of vengeance that held with it the ultimate realisation that it had changed nothing in fact, no one would be returned, there would be no wise end or healed heart. There was only the justice of the act, a warrior's offer to his lost kin. Oneakka carried his scars proudly of his own blood vengeance, and Massa now carried his own. But, Massa held something else now, Iketani' own young, saved from her before she had known it lived, and now cared for rightly so by Massa. In that choice, Massa had assured that the innocent babe would be brought up correctly, be judged with no prejudice, that there would be no lasting cruel legacy of Iketani.

Oneakka had tried to make sure that Massa's promise was true in every sense. He would not allow any of The Traitor's actions to continue unchecked. Anyone who had worked with her had to face the consequences of that choice. He would weed out her legacy if it still breed somewhere in the dark.

"Was it one strike that killed her?" Pyaban asked, sharply snapping Oneakka's full focus back into the present and away from the raw emotion and sweat promised quest.

"One was all that was needed," Oneakka confirmed.

"Who witnessed her end?"

"Elite."

"No one else, no one from Atlantis perhaps?" Pyaban asked. "Come now, Elite warrior, we made an agreement."

"Two from Atlantis, draw into the battle by The Traitor's own actions against them," Oneakka replied.

"What are their names?" Pyaban asked. "I know several of their names, though I have met none of them. If my sources are correct of what happened on Athos, then I would imagine Major Sheppard was one of them?"

Oneakka had given no vow to protect those in Atlantis, but he had fought with Sheppard, had seen the warrior nature in the man, and he did not wish to dishonour that fact. Oneakka lifted his chin refusing to answer.

"I take your silence as confirmation, Honoured Elite," Pyaban considered. "Yes?"

Oneakka stared at the man. "Who wants this information?"

"No one but me has asked for it," Pyaban replied. "I would imagine Major Sheppard was there, considering he is named as having saved those on Athos. Apart from the slain High Councillor."

"He was there," Kari replied for Oneakka. "The other Atlantis personnel was a young boy, barely out of training. You now have your information."

"Almost, I have one more question. Did she let out a cry at her end?"

It was a strange question and one that made Oneakka even more suspicious as to what exactly Pyaban gained from this.

"None," Oneakka replied, watching the other man closely. Had he been one of Iketani' consorts, bent to her will with sex, threat or information of her own. Had she traded Elite secrets?

For a moment, Oneakka considered reaching for Pyaban, to force the truth from the thickly waisted man, but he restrained himself – the mission was most important right now.

"I understand that her body was presented as evidence and then burnt," Pyaban said as he settled further back on his thick cushion. "A fitting end for such a creature. Very well, thank you for your information, and in turn I give you mine. Ulfur has been working alongside dealers of Quantum. I'm sure you are well aware of the drug, though its origin is somewhat rather bare of facts, which I must one day discover."

Oneakka set his teeth together. Had Iketani told him where Quantum had first been developed?

"I have not met Ulfur myself, but being such a distinctive man, he is known to others I have traded with. Apparently the new supplier, this Khor you showed me, does not use his services too frequently, so Ulfur has to supplement his income with other work. He moves cargo off carts during the day and works as a security guard at night in a particularly unsavoury establishment on the planet Feldu. It's a small planet, but stuffed with a large population that are able to hide from the Wraith by hiding in deep tunnels cut into the local mountains. They are very interesting and informative people."

"Which establishment?" Oneakka asked.

"It is called the Golden Flower," Pyaban replied with a grin. "Which is in no way representative of what is inside, but the name perhaps relates to the prostitutes that work on the upper levels of the bar."

"Where is it on Feldu?" Kari asked as she tapped details into her pad.

"I believe it is located somewhere in the middle of the largest town set against the mountainside, a short walk from the Portal."

Oneakka nodded, impatient now to get moving.

"I suggest that if you want to meet with him without causing too much of a stir, and the people of Feldu are quite testy, then you should meet with him before his evening shift."

"You know a lot about him," Kari noted.

"I know a lot about the Golden Flower," Pyaban replied with a smile. "Many interesting facts are passed back and forward there, and it is said that one of the prostitutes there gives the most wondrous-"

"Let's get going," Oneakka interrupted, not interested in hearing any more. He started towards the doors, feeling the tightening and then slack of the restraint line of Seeal keeping up with him.

"I look forward to trading with you again, Honoured Elite," Pyaban called from his seat. "And Seeal, once you free yourself from your shackles, remember that I will have a free place for your skills here."

Seeal didn't have the chance to reply, for Oneakka shoved open the wooden doors and strode out across the dark wooden floor outside.

"Feldu is a moon rather than a planet," Kari reported from just behind him, the two women keeping up with his fast pace back through the multitude of corridors and rooms filled with startled queuing people. "Way out on the edge of the galaxy, I have next to no information on it."

"Robiah might have more," Seeal suggested, her voice slightly winded, though he suspected it was more from annoyance than tiredness at being dragged along with him.

"He better," Oneakka stated. "It's time we stop waiting and get moving on this."

0000000  
TBC


	14. In Her Arms

**Chapter 14 – In Her Arms**

The last three hours had heralded absolutely nothing useful, and the long day was starting to make its weight felt, but John marched on. He had led Ford and Rodney into eight taverns so far on this last planet of four without any success so far. He hated the thought of going back to Teyla without having found something useful for her on the two men, whose faces were surely permanently burned into his brain now. But, after this last tavern, he had to head home. He was tired, hungry, and more than a little bit frustrated at the complete lack of leads, and Rodney had stopped constantly complaining, which _really_ wasn't a good sign. This would have to be the last stop.

But, as last hopes went, this was one of the best.

The tavern hadn't changed since the last time John had visited on a trading trip. It was a nice laid back kind of place, sort of part English pub, part coffee shop. Out front there was a nice beer garden set out in the sunshine, and inside sturdy wooden tables were set throughout the wide homely room. A long wooden bar was set across the far wall, and behind it, as expected, stood the tavern's owner.

Yeldan was a good guy, friendly and helpful, and brewed one hell of a beer. He was stood leaning one hip against his bar, stereotypically wiping down the top with a cloth. His big bushy beard looked a little more streaked with grey since John had last seen it, but he was almost certain he could make out a grin within the big soup-catcher as Yeldan spotted them.

"The Sheppard," Yeldan proclaimed. "I have not seen you for many days. Come, come, have a cup of my latest beer." He leant down and an empty wooden mug was shoved under the sprout of one of the kegs lined up along the wall behind him.

"I shouldn't really," John replied as he reached the bar and leant against it, instantly feeling comfortable, and thirst quickly shoved its way into place beside his lingering hunger.

"I'll have one," Ford put in quickly as he leant against the bar next to John.

Yeldan chuckled. "I'll give you one each; anyone from Atlantis is always welcome in my home. My son has tripled his harvest this year, and his young family live happily on the new trade with Atlantis." Yeldan set one frothy strong smelling beer in front of John and set about filling another for Ford. John's mouth literally began to water.

It would be rude not to try one mouthful. Yeldan made damn good beer, and it wouldn't be the political thing to do to insult the guy by turning down the offer. John picked up the mug and took a quick sip. It was like sweet nectar on his dry tongue.

"That is good," he signed as he set the mug back down as Ford's was set in front of him. "But, we're on duty," he added.

"This is our last stop," Ford replied quietly, "and we could take it with us."

Yeldan set a third mug down in front of Rodney, who frowned down at it. "I can set aside a keg for Atlantis if you want, I'm sure your hardworking soldiers need refreshment after battling the Wraith."

"We'll keep it in mind," John replied as he pulled out the slightly crumbled printouts of Teyla's two photos. "But, we actually need your help with something."

Yeldan set his hands on the bar and lifted his brushy eyebrows with interest. "What can I do for you?"

"Have you seen either of these men?" John asked offering the two pieces of paper to Yeldan.

He took them and held them up. "Can't say I have," he replied and John felt a deep tired crush of disappointment. If either of these two guys had been in here Yeldan would have remembered them; he was good with faces in his business and he had a lot of off world traffic through his tavern.

John had found nothing for Teyla.

"Have you tried the other taverns?" Yeldan asked.

"Yeah," John replied, standing up straight as beside him Ford took a further sip of his beer. John glanced down at his.

"I can put the pictures up on the board, see if anyone recognises them, and let you know," Yeldan offered.

John glanced at the large notice-board set on the wall beside the bar. There were various pictures and notices pinned across it, mostly all in alien writing he couldn't understand. It looked like a cross between an advertising spread and a gambling tally. "Anything that can help, thanks," he replied and picked up his beer for one last full swallow.

"Should we be concerned about these men?" Yeldan asked.

"I don't think they'll want to drawn too much attention to themselves," John guessed as he set his mug back down regretfully and licked his lips free of the thick beer. "But I would keep your distance and let us know as quickly as you can."

"Will do," Yeldan replied. "You sure you don't want to finish that?"

"No, better not," John sighed and turned away. "Thanks, Yeldan."

"Always welcome here, Sheppard," he replied.

John nodded his thanks and led Ford, who first took another sneaky swallow of beer, and Rodney back out of the tavern in to the early morning sunshine. It was weird to be walking in morning light when every cell in his body told him he was late for bed. The crazy out of synch time zones was the weirdest part of travelling off world - well not the weirdest, the life-sucking aliens would probably top that list.

"Well, that was another total waste of time," Rodney muttered.

"Are you going to say that every time?" John asked testily as they moved across the hard ground towards the open space in front of the planet's Gate.

"We need to find these guys," Ford put in. "It's important, McKay."

"I'm not saying it isn't, I meant it's a waste of _my_ time. I have far more important things to be doing."

"Like going on a date with your botany lady?" Ford teased.

"Her name is Katie. I'm a scientist, why am I even here?" Rodney protested.

"We need every hand we can spare," John replied disinterestedly as he glanced round the open space around them. There was a group of men moving towards the Gate, led by one guy who looked like he was on a mission, while the others were shouting and laughing loudly behind him. They had the look of men who had started their drinking very early in the day.

"How come Lieutenant-" Rodney started, but the loud group of men noticed them and with a shout had them heading in John's team's direction instead of the Gate. Just great. John subtly tightened his grip on his P90 hanging loosely against his front.

"Major Sheppard?" The lead guy called, hurrying towards them. His tone was agitated, but not as aggressive as John has suspected it was going to be.

"Can I help you with something?" John asked calmly as the man neared, the others trailing along behind him.

"This picture," the guy said, holding up one of Teyla's photos, and John's heart jumped with hope. "I've seen him before."

The man definitely smelt of beer, but he was walking in a straight enough line.

"This man," the guy repeated, "He was one of the thieves, broke into the town hall basement." He pulled to a sharp stop in front of John, holding up the photo, and gesturing off towards the far side of the town.

"You're sure?" Ford asked.

"They cleared out the basement, smacked poor old Dad out cold," one younger man added over the first's shoulder.

"This one," the first man continued, tightening his grip on the photo. "He was massive, like a giant. I swear it!"

John nodded immediately. They hadn't included any details on the two men, just photos, so this was confirmation that this guy really had seen the one called Ulfur. "He's over seven foot tall," he confirmed.

"Yes!" The man replied overly excitedly, turning to the crowd with him. "I told them, told them all," he proclaimed, pointing at them. "No one believed me. I said he was a giant," he insisted as he turned back to John, almost falling over in his inebriated excitement. "He towered over me, but no one believed me. They thought I was simple."

"It was a heavy knock on his head," the other younger man added, presumably this guy's son.

"But, I was right," his dad shouted as he literally jumped in the air.

Feeling he was losing some control over the conversation, John held up his hands calmly. "When was this?"

The man looked up at him, the delight and vindication forming into a brief moment of thoughtfulness. "A good year ago now."

John's heart sank a little.

"Did he say anything about where he might have come from, where they were going?" John tried.

"Nothing, just threatened me, they all did," he replied.

"Who's they?" John asked.

"There was this guy," the man held up the photo again, just to prove how right he was. John nodded. "A wiry guy, a dark-skinned man, and a woman with long hair."

"He said she was beautiful," one man in the crowd commented. "We assumed he dreamt that up too."

The first man frowned over his shoulder. "She was! Evil but pretty."

"That's how I like 'em," someone called out from the group.

"What did they take?" Ford asked.

"Cleared out all the old holy artefacts," someone answered. "Stuff the Ancestors left."

"Did they take all of it?" Rodney asked hopefully.

"They took everything, even the mouldings off the basement windows!"

It had almost been a lead, but it was a dead one.

"You don't remember anything else that could be helpful?" John asked the first man.

He blinked and focused a little more. John wondered how much more the guy might be able to remember if he was sober. "No, they took me by surprise. I was on duty you see, and it was late."

John nodded, trying not to look too disheartened. "Thanks anyway. Maybe if you remember anything else you could let us know?"

"I will do," he replied animatedly, "honest, and I was right. He _was_ a giant."

John nodded as the man moved away with his son and the others, again reminding them that he hadn't dreamt up the giant thief.

"Another complete waste of time," Rodney muttered as they continued on to the Gate.

"We know he was here, at least," John replied as he dialled in Atlantis' address and the Gate activated.

"Great, he was here a year ago, the Elite will love that helpful titbit," Rodney replied sarcastically.

"Maybe you should have had some of the beer," Ford told Rodney as the wormhole activated and they headed towards it.

They stepped from bright early morning to the blissful quiet evening of the Gate Room. John let out a relieved sigh as the Gate deactivated behind them, and ahead another team were heading down the main staircase towards them. Lieutenant Lynn had led a small group to other friendly planets to pass round the photos, but John could already tell from her frown that they hadn't found anything useful either.

"No luck our end, Major," she reported as she and her team passed his.

"Same here," John replied as he headed up the stairs to go report his failure to the Colonels.

"I'm going to my lab where I can actually get some proper work done," Rodney announced from the bottom of the stairs.

"Sure," John replied offhandedly, not even bothering to point out that it was late. He'd had enough of McKay today.

"I'll see you tomorrow morning in the Mess?" Ford called.

"Tomorrow," John confirmed with a smile down at his friend.

"We got something at least," Ford replied, attempting to be his usual optimistic self, but he too looked tired.

"Get some sleep, Lieutenant," John told him and turned back to the stairs.

The Control Room was quiet, and the smell of coffee was strong in the air, but that was normal considering it was every night shift worker's constant companion. Colonel Sumner was nowhere to be seen, so John continued on to Carter's office. Her door stood open and she was sat at her desk. She waved him in.

"Anything useful, Major?" She asked as she set aside her own fresh smelling cup of coffee.

"Nothing really," John reported as he stopped in front of her desk. "We had a report of one of them being involved in the theft of some Ancient ball-balls a year ago, but no details."

Carter sighed and nodded. "Which one?"

"The giant Ulfur," John replied. "We got a brief description of the others who were with him, which might end up being helpful," he added with a doubtful shrug.

"It might be to our Elite friends," she replied. "You've got more than anyone else."

"No one on the east pier recognised either of them?" John asked, disappointed for Teyla.

"No, though a couple of people think they have heard of a giant man, but nothing concrete."

John nodded.

"Well at least you've got something to report."

"Not much," John agreed.

"Any tiny lead can end up being useful," Carter replied. "You mind telling the Elite?" She asked. "I've got to get everything typed up ready for the dial in to Earth in the morning."

"I'll tell them right now," John replied, delighted for the excuse to go find Teyla, and suddenly stupidly pleased he had something, even something tiny, to tell her.

"They were in the Mess Hall when I passed through there to collect my meagre dinner," Colonel Carter reported with a frown at her half eaten tray of food.

"You want anything else?" John offered, feeling sorry for her and having to write all those reports.

"If you can get your report to me first thing tomorrow morning," she replied.

"Yes, Ma'am," he replied and turned away. "Happy typing," he added.

She gave him a glare that was also a smile. Out of all the superiors John had worked for, he had the most respect for Colonel Carter. She had more experience than anyone else in the city on life working through the Stargate, and she expertly walked the line between being both a scientist and military. He guessed the IOA probably had some reservations about her being in charge of the city, but with the ever present worries of the Wraith, the Alliance and their firepower, she was their best bet ever.

He made his way out of the Gate Room and down to the armoury, where he removed his radio, vest and P90, and walked back out feeling only more tired for doing so. But, he was on his way to find Teyla and hopefully some food, so he had a renewed bounce in his step as he entered the Mess Hall.

A quick scan of the large room took in two tables occupied with city staff eating a late meal, one game of chess, and the wonderful sight of Teyla. She was sat with Nalla and another Elite who John hadn't met before. He was the youngest Elite John had seen, and had only one tattoo, which was wrapped like a band around the top of his left forearm. He wore light brown leather armour, making him look oddly like an ancient Greek, and he had shaggy brown hair down his shoulders.

As John approached, Nalla looked up first and then Teyla. Both women smiled at him, but Teyla's was more natural.

"Sorry if I'm interrupting," he offered, being as polite and casual as possible.

"You are not," Teyla replied, equally as politely. "Have you found something?" She asked.

"Not much, I'm afraid," he confessed and he saw her shoulders lower a fraction.

"We have finished our meeting anyway," Nalla stated, "Since the Major is hungry and if there is little to tell, then Isen and I will return to our station."

John instantly felt awkward, wondering if Nalla was purposefully leaving him and Teyla alone. He was grateful for it, but deeply uncomfortable about it. Especially in front of another Elite he hadn't met before.

As the new Elite warrior stood up, Nalla gestured to him as if she had heard John's worried thoughts. "Major Sheppard, this is Honoured Elite Isen,"

"Honoured Elite," John greeted him.

The man nodded, his eyes the same light brown as his hair and armour. "Major Sheppard."

John was used to the Elite focused study, assessing him in ways that he had no control over, except to stand tall and confident under the inspection. After the scrutiny of Si and Oneakka, this guy was far from intimidating. Besides, he had to be more than ten years younger than John, but that then made him feel old.

The two Elite moved away quickly with polite nods, and John moved to sit down in Nalla's vacated seat. It was uncomfortably warm under him.

"Do you not want something to eat?" Teyla asked.

"Ah, yeah," he remembered that he was starving. He got back up again, and saw her smiling at him. "You want anything?"

"I am fine, thank you," she replied.

He could think of a few flirtatious ways to respond to that, but held himself back, after all they were sat in Mess Hall. Or rather she was seated and he was hanging around close by the table probably looking weird. He turned away and headed for the evening's selection of food.

He made sure to focus on filling up his tray and didn't look round at her as he did. After the brief tastes of Yeldan's beer, he wished he had a beer to drink with his meal, but a cup of coffee would do for now. He didn't want to fall asleep in his food, and maybe he and Teyla could go for another one of their walks this evening...

Feeling hopeful, as well as the usual low level arousal he felt around her, he headed back to Teyla's table. She looked up, all calm and Elite-like, but there was a sparkle in her eyes.

He sat back down in his seat, which was now cooler, and picked up his fork. He didn't really feel like eating a full plate of pasta when he was so tired, but he was hungry and he might need some energy for later with her.

He smiled at her, still acutely aware of the small, but present, number of people in the room around them.

"Anything interesting happen while I was at work?" He teased.

"Nothing new," she replied. "Politicians arguing and denying."

"No one recognised your two friends?" John asked around a mouthful of pasta.

"No," she replied with a delicate sigh. The light of the Mess Hall was soft over her strong beautiful features. He let his eyes linger on her. "But you found something?" She asked with that lift of her chin that looked so noble and proud. He really wanted to kiss her, but now really wasn't the time.

He looked down to his pasta. "The tall guy," he started.

"Ulfur," she supplied his name.

"Ulfur," he corrected with a smile, having purposefully not gotten the name right. "A man recognised him from a year ago. Apparently Ulfur was part of a group that broke into the town's storage room and stole their Ancient artefacts."

She didn't look surprised, which told John it was old news.

"He was reported as working with such a group previously," she confirmed.

"So, not much help."

"Everything is worthy of note," she replied with a part smile, which made him feel a little better at having nothing useful to bring her. "Perhaps another team will discover something more recent."

"You don't sound very optimistic," he noted.

She glanced aside and then leant her elbows on the tabletop, one elegant golden hand around her cup. She was wearing one of her usual full body suits, the top of it a high neckline that didn't show much of her, but it all hugged her tightly. He couldn't see much of that shape of her right now, since she still wore her coat, her swords sheathed on her back, but he had seen her naked enough times now. Memories slid through his inner eye, distracting him again.

He shifted in his seat a little, relieving some pressure in his boxers, and focused on his food more intently.

"Oneakka and Kari hopefully will find something more substantial," she suggested.

"I'm sure they will," John replied automatically. He didn't ask what she would do if they didn't find out anything. If this new drug was as powerful as the Elite suspected, it could seriously tip the balance in favour of the Wraith. He could tell she was quietly concerned, perhaps more than that, and having absolutely no leads so far had to be frustrating. Especially for the Elite.

"Can't imagine anyone keeping anything from Oneakka," he commented to lift her mood.

She smiled lightly. "If only it were that simple," she replied and he smiled back.

He sought to find something to talk with her about that didn't involve too much flirting or insinuation when there were others around, something to distract her from her troubles.

"Madesh looks good," he said.

Teyla's expression shifted, indicating she was aware of what he was doing, but she still answered him. "Yes, he is doing very well working with the Elite."

"Last time I saw him, he was white as a sheet from a bullet wound and afraid he was going to end up in prison."

Teyla smiled a little. "He has a unique gift, and has worked tirelessly to build himself up."

"Yeah, I noticed the muscle," John commented, exaggerating slightly with his expression, but Madesh had been a scrawny thing last time John had seen him.

Teyla smiled properly, her skin and teeth sparkling, and he felt his own heart lift to see a proper smile. He knew her proper smiles, and the truly bright ones that no one else surely got to see.

"He has been training with Oneakka," she reported.

"Oneakka?" John repeated, pulling a face. "Ouch."

She chuckled, the sound soft and pleasurable. "Oneakka usually feels most people require more muscle."

John nodded and rolled his eyes. "As he keeps telling me."

Her eyes slid to his shoulders and moved across his chest as if assessing his muscle mass – as if she didn't know how he looked under his clothes. His boxers felt tight again.

"I think you look fine," she replied quieter, the soft whisper of seduction in her voice.

He held her eyes for a moment longer, feeling that powerful sexual connection sing between them, before he quickly looked away, glancing to see who else was still in the room. He swore he could hear her grin across the table.

He looked back at her. She had lifted her cup and sipped from it with an amused smile, her eyes holding his.

Yes, he needed to finish his meal as quickly as possible.

He looked down to his tray and cleared his throat. "So Si' not involved in beating up the new guys?" He asked, grasping for a subject of conversation that wouldn't in any way lead his thoughts to what he really wanted to be doing with her right now.

"He has sparred with Madesh as well," Teyla replied, her voice normal and relaxed again, but he could hear that touch of amusement in her tone. He chose not to hear it as he looked back up to her, and then quickly back down to his meal.

He was hungry, that was the only reason why he was eating so fast.

"Oneakka often leads physical training classes for the Elite trainees," Teyla continued. "Appearing randomly to take the classes."

John grinned. "Bet they just love that."

Teyla smiled, but he didn't focus on her smile too long. Best to focus on the pasta.

"He has them running for hours, climbing ropes up and down, many of them end up throwing up or passing out," she reported.

"Do you get people dropping out of the training?" He asked with interest.

"Many," she replied, surprising him slightly. "But they usually transfer to Elite staff, who are still required to have basic training. And Oneakka still gatecrashes their lessons as well."

John grinned. "I'm amazed he has time around his Wraith killing."

"He has a tendency to grow bored between battles," she replied with a smile.

"And hunting Iketani' previous associates," John added.

"Yes," she replied, setting her empty cup down on the tabletop. "But, in that area at least he has been quite successful."

John set his fork onto his empty tray and reached for his coffee. Not hurrying or anything. "How's baby Aki?" He asked.

"I have not seen him for many days," she replied. "But, I am sure he continues to thrive."

John nodded as he took too quick a gulp of his hot coffee and set it aside. "Feel like a walk?" He asked, setting his hands on the tray.

She smiled at him, but not moving.

He held her eyes, not pretending to hide what he was hoping for. He was pretty sure she was on the same page.

Her eyes were bright and yet dark at the same time.

She stood up.

John picked up her cup and added it to his tray, and swiftly moved across the Mess Hall to leave the tray to be cleared up for him. He didn't want to waste time clearing it right now.

Teyla was waiting for him by the main exit. He joined her and they exited together, walking side by side down the empty corridor outside.

"Are you enjoying leading your own team still?" She asked.

"Yeah, sure," he replied, subtly tugging the end of his shirt out from his belt to hang down over his groin. "Don't think command's really my thing, but it's good."

She looked at him with a lifted eyebrow. "You seem a perfect candidate for leadership," she commented.

He was feeling a touch lightheaded, since most of his blood was in his groin, but he managed to focus enough on that. "Really? Me?" He asked with a playful grin.

"Of course," she replied with a smile. "Why else would Colonel Carter put you in charge of your own team."

John had his own opinion as to why.

They reached the transporter, into which one of the Marines who was stationed in the east pier was entering, her arms around a large potted plant. John moved around the pot and the woman, trying to come up with a suitable joke, but his blood was just too far away from his brain to be helpful. He triggered the level of Teyla's guest quarters. The flash of light brought them to the right level and the Marine peered round the leaves of her plant as she moved out first. There were two more Marines stationed in the corridor outside, and John exchanged nods with them both.

John glanced at Teyla as the woman moved away to the right, walking carefully with her charge.

"Wonder what that's about," John commented with a joking smile as they took the left hand corridor.

"The people of Malakien usually consume leaves similar to that plant," Teyla replied.

"That's going to be late night snack?" He asked as they took a turn and then another, which brought them to the doors of her guest quarters.

She triggered open the doors and strode inside, her small scanning pad suddenly out of a pocket and in her hand. He didn't take it as an insult to Atlantis that she always checked her room, or his, for bugs. He guessed one of the other delegates could have slipped a recording device in here whilst she was out.

He followed her inside and let the doors shut behind him, and a rush of secure isolation flowed over him, as it always did when he was alone with her. The weight in his groin increased and he moved slowly after her as she turned, the pad held high in her hand.

There was a soft bleep and she smiled faintly before slipping the pad back into its pocket.

He was on her instantly, sliding his hands around her hips, pulling her towards him.

There was no playful resistance from her tonight. She pressed her front tightly against his, and her hands slid up around his neck as her mouth met his.

He slid his tongue deeply into her mouth, cupping both her butt cheeks in his hands, the business ends of the sheathed swords on her back brushing against the back of his hands.

She murmured with pleasure as they kissed long and deep, the sound forcing the last of his blood into his swollen erection.

Her hands slid around the back of his head, pulling him into their kiss just as deeply as he kissed her. He turned her, walking them towards her waiting bed, over the rug they had had a lot of fun on the other night. Her hands tightened in his hair and he knew she was as hot and ready as he was.

Once they reached the bed, she pulled her mouth from his with a wet pop, her breath loud and fast. He broke open his eyes to see her face flushed and needful.

"Take off your clothes, John," she whispered, pulling back.

He slid his hands from her butt slowly as she pulled herself free of her coat. He moved back a few steps, knowing she was going to have to pull her swords free. He lifted shaking hands to his shirt and began to free buttons and pull his jacket off. She turned away and set her freed swords on the floor by the end of the bed, causing her to bend down, providing him with a lovely view of her body-suited form. She stood up, her back to him still and began freeing her scabbards.

He made himself turn his attention to his own clothes, tugging his shirt up and off and pulling his sidearm free, checking it was on safety and putting it on the bedside table, along with his holster and knife. He heard the rasp of fabric behind him, but forced himself to enjoy the wait as he bent down and freed his boots and pulled off his socks.

Barefooted and bare-chested, he turned back to her, to find her tugging the last of her body suit free.

She turned to face him, naked and stunning.

His hands paused in opening his fly as he let his eyes wander over her toned, athletic, yet femininely rounded figure.

She smiled as she moved towards him, her hands touching against his, brushing them aside, as she opened his fly. His hands free, he slid them up the warm soft skin of sides to her breasts and then back down to her hips, pulling her closer. Her butt was warm, full and soft, and he tightened his hands a little deeper into the muscle, squeezing as he knew she liked.

Her hands slid under the waistband of his pants, pushing them and his boxers down, and only then did her hand wrap around his shaft. He stilled at the shocking touch, his entire body tightening at the glorious sensation as she freed him from the last constraint of clothing. His pants and boxers finally loose, he lifted one leg and then the other to drop them down his legs to the floor. Free of his clothes at last, he pulled her back against him, trapping his throbbing erection between them, and pressed his mouth back against hers.

Her mouth was hot and insistent, her hands back up around his neck, holding him to her equally penetrative kiss. He murmured into it, growling almost, as he slid his hands around her naked back and butt, slipping fingers down between the cheeks to brush against her swelling lips.

She pulled her mouth from his, her hands dropping to his shoulders. "On my bed, John," she whispered, sounding breathless.

"Yes, Mistress," he teased, as he always did, smiling as he turned, sitting back on the side of the bed, but with a tight grip around her, pulling her down and over him.

She laughed lightly as she landed on him, softly womanly curves all warm against him. He slid one hand into the long loose part of her hair at the back of her head and pulled her down to start another kiss. He slid his tongue deeply into her, tangling it with hers, as she slid one leg over his hips, settling into her customary astride position. He reached down with both hands and cupped her backside again, feeling the urging raging desire in him echoed in the rolling motion of her pelvis.

God, they were both so hot for each other.

He ran one hand down between them, seeking out the hot place between her legs. He found it warm and moist, and, growling deep in his throat with pleasure, he slid two wet fingertips into her.

She responded instantly, lifting her mouth and chest from him, her head held up and back. He watched as her eyes closed with real pleasure, and saw the rise of her swollen lips into a soft smile. He slid his touch up deeper into her, but not too deep yet. He knew what she liked now. He massaged slowly and teasingly, moving constantly, so that her whole pelvis rocked against his belly and hips. He lifted his head from the bed and pressed his nose and lips up against her throat, inhaling her skin and licking a long line up to her ear lobe. She murmured again, deep and womanly, and one of her hands slid into his hair, her fingers massaging in turn.

He set his teeth gently around her earlobe as he pushed straight fingers up into her now, parting her wet flesh. She pressed down in return, deepening the penetration and he smiled as he sucked on her earlobe.

She lifted up from him though, cool air sliding between them, and he let her ear slip from his mouth and his fingers from inside her. She sat upright over him, her wet core against his lower belly and her butt against his erection.

He smiled up at her as she ran her palms down him chest and stomach. He in turn ran his wet hand up to her breast and his other hand down one thigh. Her smile was real, open, and seductive as she leant sideways off him, reaching for the small packet she had left out at some point on the bedspread. He let his hands slid over her as she settled back over him and made a show of opening the Alliance made packet. He liked the rubbers, they were thinner than Earth ones, and had a warm lubricant inside them as well as the outside so that he could get some sensation of what she felt like through it. She pulled the thin material free of its packet and rose up over him, moving back enough to give her space to set the condom over him. He kept his eyes on her face and breasts, knowing if he looked at any more right now he would reach the end far too fast. Her fingers slid the warm rubber in place in a smooth caress and he cupped both her breasts in his hands, her brown nipples grazing against the sensitive inside of his thumbs.

She moved forward, leaning into his hands and the touch of her warm core hovered over the tip of him. He reached up to her, sliding both hands to either side of her head, encouraging her down over him, pressing her belly, breasts and nipples to him as he kissed her and thrust up into her. She gasped against his mouth, her hips moving, taking him in further inside. He relaxed and thrust up against, sliding deeper into her, feeling the parting of her, the wet promised warmth through the sheath and the tight squeeze as she moaned in delight.

He ran his lips against her cheek, her chin, and her jaw as she gasped and moaned with each of his thrusts. Her legs wide around his middle, her hands back around his neck, her fingers in his hair, holding onto him as he thrust and retreated, sliding his hands down her naked back, over old scars and undulating flesh.

She threw back her head, allowing light in between them and he opened his eyes to watch her again. Her eyes partly open, were upturned, her mouth open, as he filled her. He slid his hands around her butt checks and then down her thighs, encouraging them a little wider, holding tightly, feeling her wetness against the top of her inner thighs. He pressed his mouth up against her neck again, sucking on her skin, then biting as he kept up his solid penetrative rhythm.

Her cries altered, deepening, growing louder, and he felt her contracting around him. He kept moving, driving her higher, feeling the tightening in his lower back and balls.

He wanted to roll her onto her back, to watch her fully as he moving into her, to press his cheek and body against hers, to be able to thrust freely, but she wouldn't want that. Allowing him to lie vaguely over her as he kissed her the other day had been one thing, but he had promised to keep to her Elite rule of never lying under him. But this angle was tiring him, and he wanted more.

He slid one arm up her back, lying his forearm up her spine, his hand at the back of her neck, and with his other hand on her thigh he rolled them onto their sides, keeping them locked together.

She didn't protest, just adjusted herself against him so he wasn't crushing her leg under him. Her arms around him, she lifted her upper leg right up, and he could see himself sliding into her. Deep primal delight filled him, as he could now thrust deeper, feeling the warm seal of her womb deep inside her, and the wonderful sight of her lying naked in his embrace.

"Faster, John," she begged, her voice deep and breathless, her upper leg even higher now, up under his armpit. He held her tighter and pounded into her, sliding his mouth up her throat, listening to her seductive murmurs and moans, the wet slapping of their bodies joining, and his own rising, rushing urging orgasm almost upon him.

Her hands around his neck and shoulder, she held tightly onto him, almost to the point of pain.

It was all too good - the rasp of her nails, of the captured images of the smooth lines of her throat, of dark ink moving with his thrusts, and the wet hot space he buried himself into.

And then with a rushing explosion in his groin, he ground deeply into her, holding deep as he released into her. Her leg tightened around him, her hips rocking, grinding around him as she took from him as she needed.

She gasped loudly in his ear, crying out in pleasure, and he groaned deeply into her throat, thrusting weakly through the last he had to offer her.

She felt warm, encompassing, and wet, and the pleasure soared high through him as he panted into the warm space between her ear and her throat.

Her arms tight around him, her body merged with his, they held each other, panting and sighing, desperate to prolong the moment, but knowing it wouldn't be enough.

His eyes shut, he willed the investigation off world to take just a little longer to get back to them, to allow him just a little more time here in Teyla's embrace.

0000000  
TBC


	15. Finding Ulfur

**Chapter 15 – Finding Ulfur**

The Elite room was abuzz with noise and activity as they planned their capture of Ulfur. Charts and schematics were displayed across two large wall screens, and electronic pads littered the central table around which the Elite were gathered with Robiah. Seeal couldn't see much detail of what they were discussing, since her ever-present watchman blocked most of her view of the room, but she gathered that they had easily located the town Pyaban had described and Robiah even had some reasonably secure intell on the place. Not that she could see the displayed town maps from her isolated chair set in the furthest corner, her watchman's back to her, penning her in away from the rest of the room.

As if she would try something with a handful of Elite between her and the room's single exit, and nowhere to escape to while onboard this Elite ship.

She lowered her attention to her midday meal, which unsurprisingly consisted of yet another bowl of rice-meal porridge. At least this time someone had put some fruit on it for her, and she had even been given a cup of real tea to drink. She guessed she had won some points for the success of her suggestion to go to Pyaban for information.

And she hadn't even tried to escape.

She had thought about it though, had spied a few openings between the passing civilians of the citadel to the alleyways beyond into which she could have dashed away quickly. Except she hadn't tried because she wouldn't have made it more than two steps whilst tied to the lump of immovable Elite that was her guard.

Oneakka.

The name suited him – unusual and pronounced with obvious distinctive sounds, ending in a guttural vowel.

She glanced up at his back, wide and resolutely blocking her off from the rest of the room. She could at least hear what was being said though, but then she guessed that was why she was in here. They were planning on capturing her brother after all.

"The Feldu moon is right on the edge of the furthest reach of the galaxy," Robiah was saying loudly across the room. He was clearly enjoying being the one to supply the Elite with his suspiciously detailed information on Feldu and the Golden Flower. "The Wraith don't cull there all that often, as it's too far from everything else and they rarely catch anyone because of the highly effective use of the mountain hideouts. One of my men worked undercover at the Golden Flower a year or so ago, so these maps are reasonably current."

"Pyaban implied Feldu was a busy place," the Elite female known as Kari asked from her seat next to Robiah, looking at the pads. "Because of the success of hiding from the Wraith?"

"Not just because of that, as the population has grown considerably with increased trade through the Portal," Robiah replied, "They trade mostly in alcohol and a compost fertiliser."

"Compost?" the tall Elite male who had helped capture Seeal on Aldine asked from the other side of the room.

"There's something in the soil on Feldu that, when mixed with the dung from the farming animals, makes a potent plant fertiliser. They trade sacks of the stuff through the Portal daily, and the responding income has massively increased the population on the moon over the last decade, mostly through their own increased crops, better nutrition, and immigration of traders."

"Pyaban said we needed to be cautious of the locals," Kari commented.

"They are strong willed people, who look out for their own, and have a 'healthy' distaste for authorities as many have tried to take control of the fertiliser business."

"So we should get to Ulfur before the drinking starts," Kari concluded.

"The Golden Flower opens in about..." Robiah checked a pad and then his wrist timepiece, "about three hours from now. If we can find where Ulfur is staying, which will probably be near the bar, then we can get to him before he begins his shift at the bar."

"Why not capture him in the Golden Flower?" The large dark-skinned Elite asked. "We know he will be there."

"The bar is not just one building, it's an amalgamation of three former buildings, all joined together," Robiah replied fishing out a pad from the others and holding it out to the Elite warrior. "They broke through and extended the bar into the other buildings, setting up more space for the whores and barrel storage. It's a mix of tiny rooms, half levels, and more exits than we could cover." He set his forearms on the table, loving his shining moment. "I can have a small squad of non-uniformed Division officers meet us on Feldu, one of which will be the man who worked undercover there before. We can send him into the bar to talk with his previous fellow workers, mention Ulfur's name as if he invited him back to try out the place again."

Seeal glanced around at the Elite faces she could see, judging their opinion of that suggestion. The Elite worked with the Military all the time, but she imagined working with Robiah's people might be less appealing.

"We are short on the ground," Kari said. "Si, you are needed in command of the Sythus, leaving only three of us, and our prisoner to watch over as well."

"More bodies on the ground will help," the heavily weapon-loaded Si agreed. "This Ulfur is a big man; we will need superior numbers."

"We can easily handle him," Oneakka stated.

"He will put up a considerable fight, and even if you do overwhelm him, trust me when I say he will make it difficult for you, and he will make a lot of noise doing so," Robiah replied. "The Alliance doesn't mean anything on Feldu, and if they see a group from the Alliance attacking someone from their community then they'll turn on us. Best we go in quiet, surround him with weapons, and he'll behave, I'm sure of it."

Seeal shook her head at that – Ulfur behave himself? Unlikely. Why change the habit of a lifetime?

Ulfur had spent his entire life getting into trouble, and she had spent her youth getting him out of it. Listening to Robiah and the Elite plan how to capture him made her feel strangely conflicted about helping them though. After all these years and all the wraith shit she had gone through with Ulfur, she still felt the instinctive urge to protect her stupid and hate-filled brother.

He certainly wasn't going to be pleased to see her again. Not that she was in any way keen to see him either.

The dark memories of the last time she had seen him played through her mind's eye. The dark empty warehouse, the two of them the only survivors left in the room. The place had smelt of dank rot and blood. Ulfur, one of his eyes swollen and at least one knuckle broken, had shouted curses down at her. His nasty shouts had echoed through the wide decaying building, and she could still remember his words clearly to this day. He had cursed her, blamed her for his mistakes, and had told her that she had killed their father. All this after she had just saved his neck yet again, had saved him from men who had wanted to gut him if he didn't pay out on what he owed them. And they hadn't been the type of men you could just threaten off. Of course Ulfur had found a way of getting out of his payment, but it had involved using her. She hadn't liked the terms of that deal, so she had had to act to save herself and him, and all Ulfur had repaid her with were accusations.

Standing there in that abandoned rotting warehouse, listening to his denial laden anger, she had finally had enough. She had warned him that she wouldn't look out for him anymore, that she was leaving the planet and that he would no longer be her brother. But he had only laughed at her, had shouted that she was the one disowned, that their father hadn't truly believed she had been his. The words had cut deep, as Ulfur had intended them to, but they had also served to fuel her own coldly growing bitter anger. She had warned him one last time, had given him the choice to mend his ways and apologise to her, or force her to walk away from him. He had laughed at her though, had cursed her as the one disowned again, and so she had turned her back to him and had walked away.

She had not seen him since that day, fifteen years ago, and she wasn't looking forward to seeing him again.

She imagined he would enjoy the reunion even less so.

"...we surround and move in," Robiah's words registered across the room and Seeal realised she had missed much of the conversation.

She had managed not to think of her brother in a very long time, but now it seemed that the memories were unstoppable. Memories replayed over and over again in her mind, lingering particularly on Ulfur's last shouted words to her that had followed her out of the warehouse into a dark alien world by herself.

"Seeal?" Robiah's voice registered again.

She looked up from her bowl to find all eyes on her, even her guard was glancing down at her past his tall shoulder. It was a view of men of which she had many dark memories. At least he hadn't been carrying knives and tent hooks when he had come to capture her, unlike her own people.

"What?" She asked with as bored a tone as she was able.

"Do you think we'll be able to question him there?" Robiah asked, enunciating each word as if she spoke a different language.

She narrowed her eyes at him. "You think you can move him off that moon?" She replied logically.

"Will he be reasonable?" Robiah asked.

"_You_ seemed to think he will be. I haven't seen him in fifteen years," she replied before she focused back down on her remaining food, the porridge cold and the last of the fruit's juice making the cold mix begin to curdle. She made herself take another mouthful, for the porridge was at least filling.

"Maybe we shouldn't take her with us," the tall male Elite suggested.

"She comes with us," Oneakka replied. "She'll get the answer out of him."

Seeal looked up at Oneakka's back. She suspected that he knew the two knives sheathed against his lower back were a horrid temptation to her to try and escape. "I can assure you," she said up at him, "Ulfur will not be pleased to see me."

"Your presence will destabilise him," Oneakka replied without turning to look at her.

"He showed signs of contrition to me," Robiah commented and Seeal rolled her eyes. "He feels lost in between the stars, and she is his only family; perhaps after so many years, he might feel differently towards her."

"My brother doesn't change," Seeal stated, hearing her own dark sour tone as if it were coming from someone else. "He burns with hatred."

"All fires burn out eventually," Robiah replied stupidly. "It has been a long time, Seeal." Her name sounded polluted coming from his mouth.

She shrugged at him and returned her attention on her meal, trying to coax the fruit's juices down out of the slippery remains of the last of the porridge.

They would soon see the truth of Ulfur for themselves.

The room continued in its business without her input, plans decided on quickly and efficiently, which she guessed was normal for the Elite. She set her bowl aside and picked up the thick plastic cup of tea. Its warmth felt welcoming, and she wrapped her hands around the cup to absorb as much heat from it as she could as further memories replayed; of Glisi freezing falling snow, of blood dripping across ice, and the howls of rage and fear chasing her through the forest.

A shadow fell across her and she realised the room was quiet. She waited a beat before she looked up.

Her guard stood looking down at her, his scarred and tattooed face as unreadable as ever.

"You going to sit there all day?" Oneakka asked.

She looked past him to see that the others had all left, that the pads were stacked aside, and the far doorway stood open.

It was time to go face her brother.

She was in no hurry to leave though. Looking up at Oneakka, she wondered that if she attempted to attack him in any small way, would he be forced to leave her on the ship?

The tea in her hand wasn't hot enough to be useful in throwing at him, and he had managed to fight her with mud in his eyes before, so some watery tea splashed over his face probably wouldn't be all that effective.

And she wouldn't put it past him to simply stun her and carry her over his shoulder to the Golden Flower.

"Up," Oneakka ordered as he stepped aside, leaving the way open across the empty room to the exit.

She drank the last few gulps of her tea, and only then stood up.

"Drop the cup," he added.

She sighed wearily as if his point was foolish, and set the empty cup down on the seat behind her.

"Feel safer?" She asked him as she strode for the exit, keeping her pace fast as she headed out into the corridors of the Elite ship.

She didn't need Oneakka's ordered directions this time, for the flow of people back towards the craft bay was obvious. The ship's workers were scurrying in and around the waiting transport craft, with which she was growing a little too familiar. Oneakka's presence drew closer as she reached the hatch of the transport craft, and she wondered if he thought she would try to knock out the pilot and steal the craft for herself. It was a good idea, but she knew she wouldn't get very far. There was another transport craft on the other side if the small bay and she suspected that Oneakka would have no qualms about shooting down an Elite craft to stop her.

Grasping hold of the side of the hatch, she climbed inside, finding the other two Elite already in their seats, and Robiah was settling into one directly ahead of her. Why did he have to come with them? Facing Ulfur was going to be tough enough without having to deal with this piece of... Oneakka pushed against the middle of her back, encouraging her, in his usual subtle way, to move further into the craft. So, steadfastly ignoring Robiah, and his annoyingly pitting smile, she brushed past him and headed for the back of the small craft.

She chose one of the seats directly at the back, so that she could see out the front of the craft, and also prevent Oneakka from sitting directly opposite her.

She was still tempted to try something, to make a play for one of the many weapons all so handily close by. She knew she would have no chance against Elite in such tight quarters, maybe in any size space, but the compulsion to get out of this situation by any means was so strong. As Oneakka closed the hatch of the craft and moved through the tight space in her direction, his wide shoulders blocking her view of the pilot powering up the craft, she fixed her eyes on the several guns on his hips and the flash of light against the hilts of the two knives sheathed against his lower back.

It wouldn't be hard to reach out, to try for one, to get her hands on a weapon of some sort for the first time in too long. He would see her move well before she got a grip of the weapon though, so it was a stupid thing to even think, but right now, she would give anything to get out of this. If they would just leave her behind, then they could find Ulfur by themselves...

Oneakka moved out of her view and sat down at a right angle to her, barely a metre away, but now too far for her to attempt to reach a weapon. As he sat down, she felt his attention on her, but she kept her eyes forward as the craft began to lift up. Outlining her view, she saw Robiah and the tall male Elite both glance at her, but she ignored them too. She just watched out the front of the craft as it slid out of the backend of the Elite ship and the dark peace of space replaced it. She fixed her attention on the pinpoints of starlight as the craft banked down and under the Elite ship's belly.

She still missed the views from Dreamstation, of the blackness of space with its magical spread of distant stars. She had stood each day on the station, looking out at the peaceful view, imaging the still silence out there, picturing herself tumbling alone between the stars, peaceful and calm. It had felt like the furthest she could ever get away from the cold white snow and screams of her home world.

But such views out of Dreamstation were not possible anymore, for even if she escaped, she could never risk going back there ever again. She realised that she really would miss the station, not because of Creass' offer, not for the job she had been so skilled at, but because of those peaceful vistas and the sense of controlled warmth and safety in living in the station. Her view of these new stars outside the craft was no substitute, for almost immediately a planet rose up, blocking them from her.

The glowing heat of entry into the planet's atmosphere quickly dispersed into soft white clouds hanging lightly over the planet's landscape beneath. Green fields and woodland stretched out below the lower levels of the clouds, broken through with the delicate patterns of long snaking rivers and the darker spreading patches of settlements. She guessed this was Sunkara still, but had no interest in asking the Elite around her, who had all remained silent throughout the descent.

One area of wide farmlands grew closer, the pilot angling the craft down and around in a low sweep out over a wide sprawling settlement and beyond to where the Portal stood clearly in a circle of open land. A long line of people and carts joined the Portal to the settlement, but as the craft passed over them, Seeal saw many of them backing away from the Portal. The Elite had no emblem or military colours, but she suspected that news of there having been Elite on Sunkara last night would have gotten around.

The pilot set the craft down quickly and efficiently in the open space beside the Portal and the engines powered down immediately. The Elite all stood and the hatch broke open, sending bright sunlight into the craft. The promise of fresh air, of escape and freedom sang to her. Despite her love of Dreamstation's regulated and warmed air, she was surprised how often the taste of fresh air made her feel more invigorated. It promised the chance of escape soon.

The Elite and Robiah filed out of the craft as she took in the air.

Except for Oneakka. He sat forward in his seat to her right, and his attention felt like a literal physical force compelling her to slide her gaze towards him. His cold blue eyes were fixed on her with a heavy frown, and he held the shackle and restraint line in one hand.

"No escaping," he stated in that annoyingly frustrating way that made it seem like he had known exactly what she had been thinking. She wanted to respond with something sarcastic, but her heart didn't feel up to it. So she rolled her eyes and looked away as she held out her right arm for the restraint.

He wrapped the shackle around her wrist efficiently. "We had an agreement, yes?" He asked as he sealed the electronic lock on the shackle.

She felt the silent weight of his gaze on her again and yet again felt forced to look at him. His expression stated that they weren't going to move anywhere until she agreed with him. She wondered if he really would sit in here until she did. Maybe that would get her out of this trip to find Ulfur.

She held his cold blue gaze, stubbornly refusing to say the words he wanted from her, as if they would be wholly binding between them. She was a despicable criminal in his view, and he was an idiotic self-sacrificing thick-headed Elite in her mind, so what did a few empty words really mean?

"Yes," she confirmed despite herself and looked away from him.

His hands dropped from her wrist and she watched out of the corner of her eye as he unravelled the restraint line and clipped it to his belt. "Ulfur's a weak man inside," she found herself saying, "but he's physically strong and moves suddenly."

Oneakka stood up. "We move quickly too," he stated before he moved away, forcing her to follow him out of the transport craft.

The sun was even brighter overhead than she had expected as she followed the Elite and Robiah, across the grass towards the waiting Portal. As she had seen from above, the locals had moved right back, leaving free the Portal's dialling device where it stood on a raised stone plinth. Kari stepped up onto the plinth and triggered the Portal address for Feldu.

The Portal lit up instantly, the lights turning within its inner ring, as Seeal stood behind the semi-circle of waiting Elite. Stood behind the warriors, she had an especially good view of the all the Elite weaponry, which she sized up and memorised for possible future use. As the wormhole burst to life, she considered that none of them were paying her any attention, but then no simple knife would cut through the restraint line and if she tried to run Oneakka's body weight alone would be enough to stop her in her tracks. He would only need to pick her up from the dew-wet grass.

The Portal formed, its familiar shimmering surface waiting for them, and they moved forward, Seeal forced to follow.

"We had best keep to the shadows once there," Robiah suggested, which was a truly stupid thing to tell Elite warriors. "There is usually a lot of activity around the Portal on Feldu."

Kari disappeared first into the wormhole, heading, as they all were, towards the left side of the Portal so to 'keep to the shadows' as Robiah had suggested. The tall Elite and Robiah stepped through a second afterwards and then Oneakka in front of her.

In a sudden moment of awareness, as his wide back slid into the shimmering Portal, Seeal realised she had a chance to escape, that if the Portal shut down with the restraint line partway through it, then it would be severed. She would be free on this side and could quickly dial a new address before Oneakka dialled back here. But, the realisation was too late, and her forward momentum carried her after him, which was why she missed the chance. Not because she in anyway felt she needed to see through her side of their agreement, and not because perhaps she was more invested in seeing Ulfur again. Perhaps to finally be able to wipe the stain of guilt from her past.

Feldu arrived around her in a sudden assault on all her senses. It was deafening loud, her view was crushed with a seething wall of faces and carts forming a wall around the Portal and under her, thick slick water-logged mud almost skidded her boots out from under her. Dirty cold rainwater splashed up her legs as she stabilised herself a split second before she was tugged roughly after the Elite disappearing into the wall of people.

But none of that was as powerful and as overwhelming as the stink of the dung compost that hung like a suffocating blanket in the air. The urge to throw up was so strong that she had to press her free hand to her face, covering her nose and mouth, as she was forced to slip between the tight press of Felduans to follow Oneakka. She couldn't make him out, since he and the other Elite had pulled brown hoods up over their heads, and the stink of Feldu was making her eyes stream. So she just followed the direction her wrist was pulled, between the crushing insistent push of the locals all apparently determined to be the next through the Portal.

Bile rose up her throat and she began to feel lightheaded, so she forced herself to take a deep breath of the disgusting air. It helped, clearing her mind a fraction, through which she spotted Robiah, who looked pale and about to throw up himself, and then Oneakka's thick shoulder suddenly filled her view as she all but ran into him.

"This way," he commanded and a hand wrapped around her upper arm.

More muddy water splashed up her legs as she moved with him and the other Elite, who, despite their disguises, were still being given more room through the crowd. In a little more control of her gag-reflex now, Seeal managed to take in more detail of the crowd, and through swimming eyes, she noticed that the Elite were headed towards a line of shacks, outside of which stood a man waving to them. One of Robiah's men presumably.

They reached the shack quickly and all filed inside the small space. The weak promise of some respite from the crowd and the stink helped her to shove her way against Oneakka's arm and squeeze herself between him and Kari, as they all took loud deeper breaths. It still stunk in the shack, but the dung inside was fresher and the scent of hay was a welcome sweeter overtone.

To the right, Robiah coughed and retched, and despite her own discomfort, Seeal felt a burst of amusement at the sight. It was about time he started suffering a little in all this.

"It is an overwhelming aroma, Sir, but you get used to it," one of Robiah's men said calmly. "Here, try this."

Through blurred eyes, Seeal saw a tiny bottle being held out by a steady hand. Kari, being the closest, took the bottle first and inhaled deeply over it before handing it away to the other Elite, and finally the tall Elite passed it towards Robiah, who was still trying to empty his stomach. Seeal quickly intercepted the bottle, since Robiah clearly wasn't ready for it. She lifted the tiny bottle to her nose and an almost equally overwhelming scent of flowers and spice raced up her nasal passages. She sneezed immediately, but the world suddenly no longer smelt like vomit mixed with dung. Trust her brother to find a place that smelt like shit as a home.

With deep relief, she handed the bottle to Robiah, who this time managed to take it. The world feeling more stable and understandable, she brushed moisture from her eyes and took in Robiah's men who filled up the other side of the shack. There were five of them and they stood straight-backed and with a professional calm. She instantly judged them to be militarily trained, which was a surprise considering they were Investigation Division. Perhaps ex-Military then. They were armed with two Genii side-arms each, and had the look of men who had seen plenty of action. They were clearly not Robiah's usual idiots. They looked like they could be useful in a fight, which is what they might find with Ulfur.

"We should reach the town in half an hour," the lead Division man reported as he took back the flower-scented bottle and tucked it away in a top pocket of his coat. "The Golden Flower is a few minutes into the town through uphill streets, but easy enough to find."

"You were undercover there?" Kari asked.

"Yes, Honoured Elite, it's been a while since I was there, but some should recognise me. I think one lady in particular working there should let me know where Ulfur's holed up." He bantered with a wink, which Seeal suddenly realised was directed at her. She frowned at him and looked away to assess the other men. She knew the type - they thought anything female would respond to them. She had no time for such men, particularly right now.

"Let's not waste any time then," Kari stated and suddenly the shack was emptying again, and Seeal was once again pulled back out into Feldu. With their hoods up and confident body language the Elite moved quickly through the tight press of the crowd this time, and within a couple of minutes they were out the other side of the crush. A long busy muddy 'road' stretched out ahead of them, leading through the middle of tall grain fields towards where the foot of the mountain rose up to fill the sky. Robiah's lead man led the way ahead, onto the road and towards where her brother would be living.

Maybe it was because they were away from the press of the trading carts, or just because of the fragrant oil up her nose, but the acrid air wasn't as obvious as before. However, the road to the town had its own detractors. The 'road' was cut though with a multitude of deep ruts from the carts, and clearly over time pedestrians had attempted to walk to the side of the road, but that had only served to widen the muddy mess, so now the only options were to walk through the deep water filled ruts or through the uneven muddy sides of the road. She wasn't experienced at moving across muddy slippery ground, especially when chained to an Elite, but she managed to keep her footing. One of Robiah's team and Robiah himself slipped at one point, knees and hands ending up in the thick wet mud. But falling over here wasn't anything new as plenty of locals were slipping over, especially the children, so they were not singled out.

As they progressed, Seeal grew more frustrated with the locals, because you would have thought it would be sensible to establish a more stable and solid roadway since so many people clearly used this route to the Portal. Each time a cart rolled past, everyone had to turn their backs to prevent being splattered with muddy water, but fortunately for now it seemed that most of the carts were already at the Portal. These people really needed to sort out their trade routes.

It was interesting to see the Elite walk the road, their footwork on the wet muddy ground controlled and apparently easy for them. She guessed they trained in all weather and all possible landscapes in fighting the Wraith, and she found herself sticking close behind Oneakka's experienced steps. She had almost reached out to steady herself against his back a few times to stop herself slipping over, but fortunately it hadn't been necessary. She cheered herself up at the thought that if she did end up falling down into the mud, she might take him down with her by the restraint line. She was almost tempted to try.

The road eventually began to dry out as it rose towards the settlement now clearly nestled up against the side of the towering foot of the mountainside. The town was surrounded with a tall wooden fence, with the occasional leaning watchtower. She estimated it had to hold a good few thousand people. Smoke drifted up from plenty of chimneys and there was the recognisable loud ringing of blacksmiths at work. The road circled round and up into the settlement through a simple entrance watched by only one guard, who looked far too young for the duty. He didn't even seem to glance at the disguised Elite as they entered the town, though he did nod with recognition at the former spy at the lead of their group.

Their guide led the way into the town, heading up the main street, which was almost as busy as the Portal had been. It had clearly rained here in the last couple of hours, which explained the amount of water there had been on the road. Water dripped from everything, including the people, the passing carts, and the four legged creatures pulling the wares. Whereas there had been little planning put into the road to the Portal, in the town more effort had been put into the construction of the squat tightly pressed buildings. However, everything looked a little too worn, and the buildings all had something of a lean to them. Water dripped off broken drain pipes and from obvious cracks in the plaster. Water was running almost constantly down the street, presumably from the rest of the town further uphill. There were some resemblance of shallow ditches cut on either side of the street, but it was clear that no further thought had been put into how to angle the road surface to make the water flow into the channels. Though the steep slope created a natural runoff, with so much water flowing slowly underfoot, if there was ever a frost on this moon, ice would form a pure dangerous sheet across the road.

As the road rose up through the town, the street began to widen and the passing crowd with it. No one paid Seeal and her group any mind, though she seemed unable to stop herself from scanning the sea of faces around her nervously, instantly focusing on any men taller than average with a near frantic obsession.

Despite all the dangerous and arrogant men she had stood up to on Dreamstation, and among the Elite, she had never felt as nervous as this.

Ulfur had never frightened her when she was younger; after all she had grown up used to the massive Glisi shouting obscenities down at her. But, fifteen years had been a long time, and she could not help herself searching the crowd for her brother, as if being the first to locate him would give her some sort of power over the situation.

He was nowhere to be seen though.

The street eventually joined several more via a rough meeting square of sorts. The lead Division man led them across the square, past crowds and carts, and into a narrow street beyond. The buildings here bigger and slightly better built here, towering up and almost seeming to touch overhead in the tight lane. Water dripped down from further rough attempts at guttering, and from sculpted figureheads locked in frightening grimaces, designed presumably to frighten away the Wraith, as so many believed. As if the Wraith would stop to notice the architecture their food lived in.

The lane opened up to a road running across their path and on the other side stood a sprawling series of buildings, the largest of which held tarnished lettering over its entrance announcing it to be the Golden Flower. It looked dark inside and the doors were closed against the chill running across the new road.

Robiah's spy led them to gather under an overhang on the other side of the road to the bar.

"I won't be long," the man announced.

"Maybe someone should go in with you," Robiah suggested, his shoulders up high around his ears.

"Best if I go in alone, it'll look suspicious otherwise," the man replied.

"Be quick," Oneakka ordered from inside his large linen hood.

The man nodded before turning away and making his way across the road, pushing his hood back off his head at the last moment before he pushed against one of the doors to the Golden Flower and disappeared inside.

Seeal didn't like standing around waiting out here for a man she didn't know to find out such vital information, but there was little else to do. The Division men and the Elite formed a small circle, appearing to any passerby as simply a group conducting a trading discussion.

She was, again, left outside the circle, so she shifted to her left to stand further under the overhand and away from the water that had been dripping on the back of her shoulder. She lifted her hands and huffed some dry warmer air over her hands. The motion tugged on the restraint line slightly, but Oneakka didn't react. She hardly had anywhere to go right now.

But, once they had Ulfur... If she could persuade Oneakka to remove the restraint while she talked to her brother, a moment might then present itself in which she could slip away.

She turned, her breath warming her damp hands, and studied both directions of the road. There were annoyingly few alleyways in this town, no open doorways to slip through, just wet steps and closed doors. If a chance moment occurred in which she could escape, her only choice would be to run as fast as she could to put as much distance between her and the Elite, and she would have to trade away her boots, which she suspected held a hidden tracker within the filled in compartments of her heels.

Across the road, the door to the Golden Flower opened and Robiah's spy emerged. Seeal didn't have her timepiece anymore, but she guessed he had been gone at least ten Alliance standard minutes, perhaps more.

He walked away down the road past them, gesturing subtly with his head for them to follow. It communicated the suspicion that he was being watched from inside the bar.

The Elite and Division men paused for a beat before following him. They caught up with him around the next bend, standing close in the tight entrance to an empty lane.

"He's staying around the corner," the man reported. "Close to where I stayed when I was working at the Flower, but he's on the ground floor, apparently the other residents didn't want to risk him living on the upper floors."

Seeal imagined that was true enough with Ulfur's size.

"Entrance?" Kari asked.

"It's a mishmash of rooms all cobbled together as the building grew, there's three entrances to the ground room that I remember."

Robiah tapped away on a pad and lifted it to show them all a schematic of the building. Seeal craned her neck around Oneakka's overly large right arm to see the display, but he closed the gap between his arm and the tall Elite next to him. She rolled her eyes and stepped back, making sure to tug harder than necessary on the restraint line as she did so.

Stood right behind him, her attention slipped to his weapons. The hilts of his two long knives, sheathed horizontally against his lower back, protruded close to where she stood. If she could sneak one free.

She would certainly feel better facing Ulfur with a weapon in her hand.

The men broke apart abruptly, splitting into two groups, one heading back out onto the road they had just left, whilst the others, including Oneakka, and therefore her, continued up the lane. They were moving with a swiftness of purpose now.

She instantly responded to the change in the energy of the group, her own cautious skills slipping into play. Following along behind Oneakka, she was led through a small series of tight turns around leaning buildings, until the remaining Division men split away with the tall Elite, leaving her with Oneakka, Kari, and Robiah. Three groups, one for each entranceway to Ulfur's home.

One more turn and her group stopped, the Elite keeping close, their hoods low over their faces as they looked out into a lane stretching down the slope. Unable to see anything useful, Seeal turned so to at least watch the lanes behind the group. It wouldn't do her any good for them to be attacked from behind. Nothing unusual caught her eye, though she was aware that her heart was beating far faster than normal.

It had been fifteen years.

She shoved the thought from her mind as she watched the lane in silence, falling on experience to relax her gaze and look for what did not fit among the small number of people moving along the lane. She felt very strange without a weapon in such a situation, but at least she knew where she could get one quickly – off Oneakka's back – if necessary, but she still felt uncomfortably vulnerable. Most people would probably consider having to stick close to an Elite warrior as a safe place to be in a dangerous situation, and without weapons of her own, she guessed that for now, it was true for her too.

Robiah shifted to her left and she looked back round. Robiah pressed a hand to his radio earpiece and nodded, and the group moved forward.

Her heart rate jumped again as she followed. Ulfur must have been sighted.

Robiah, pad held subtly low in his hand, lead them across the lane and into a small alleyway. Kari slipped ahead, taking the lead through the progressively narrowing alley. At the far end there were several doorways, everything dripping with water. As they headed swiftly towards them, an elderly man came into view sat on a stoop to the side, but he just continued smoking silently as he watched them pass by. The furthest doorway at the narrow end of the alleyway stood open, and Kari pressed her back against one side of the frame, Oneakka and Robiah moving to the other side. Seeal kept in close behind Oneakka, moving swiftly and purposefully, keeping plenty of slack in her restraint line in case he had to act suddenly.

The doorway stood open and silent, but the brief glimpse Seeal had caught as she had crossed past it, had shown only a dim corridor inside.

Holding silent and still, water dripped onto the back of her neck, cold and wet as it trickled down under her shirt. She rolled her shoulders, trying to bloat up the water.

Next to her, Oneakka tensed and she tensed with him. Then there was a distant shout from inside and Kari moved suddenly, entering the doorway, Robiah surprisingly the next in, and Oneakka followed. Seeal darted in after him, and immediately she could hear the shouting.

"Stand down," a Division man was shouting.

"Who in the name of all shit are you?" Ulfur's voice bellowed over the repeated order, his voice echoing back to her from the past. Fifteen years, but she recognised his voice instantly, and it brought back more than memories. It brought back pain and anger.

She suddenly felt her former nervousness slipping away, as if a previous mantle of confidence had settled back onto her shoulders.

Oneakka moved forward and stopped abruptly, which finally brought them both into Ulfur's room, which was larger than she had expected. The Division men encircled the room, weapons drawn and pointed at Ulfur, the two other exits blocked, one with the tall male Elite who stood calm and still with no weapons in his hands.

And in the middle of it all stood Ulfur, his massive shoulders standing a full foot higher than the tallest Elite, and his chest was as wide as the doorway they had just entered through.

He looked the same, though his dark hair was longer, his chest fuller with muscle that came to men with middling years, but his face looked older. Older than it should look. Glisi had the same natural lifespan as any humans, but they usually aged well – Ulfur was not aging well. His face was heavily lined and his skin looked rough, as if he had spent far too much time out under the sun, and the areas around his eyes looked too hollow to be healthy. But, he was still as strong as his genes, and very much a threat to the men surrounding him.

He hadn't seen her yet, but he had just noticed Robiah.

Surprisingly, Robiah stepped boldly forward, looking up at Ulfur. "You haven't been in touch, Ulfur," he said as if they were having a simple conversation. He had used that tone on her frequently.

Ulfur glanced away to the men surrounding. "I've been busy," he replied, his voice deep and low, deeper than when she had last heard him speak. His attitude was the same though. "I've got two jobs going."

"I've heard. In the Golden Flower," Robiah replied. "We had an agreement, Ulfur. You were supposed to be feeding me regular information on the network. On Khor."

Ulfur turned his dark brown eyes back to Robiah with obvious surprise. Seeal could see his mind turning behind his eyes; he had never been good at hiding what he was thinking.

"Yes, I know his name now, Ulfur, and I can't wait any longer for the information I need," Robiah stated.

Ulfur huffed with that annoying disregard Seeal had always hated. He would dance away from the question now, while trying to work out how to turn the situation in his favour. "I didn't know you were running with Elite, Robiah," Ulfur replied.

"They are not here for you, Ulfur," Robiah promised. "I've told them that you are working for me, that you are a valuable asset."

Ulfur looked around to the tallest Elite, who nonetheless was still far shorter than him. "They don't look all that worrying to me." He baited stupidly.

"Ulfur," Robiah called as if talking to a naughty child. "It would do you best not to upset them. Just provide us with the information we need. Where is Khor?"

Ulfur looked back round, but his eyes were assessing Kari and then Oneakka. He still hadn't seen Seeal. He was too busy judging the muscle in the room, working out what it would take to escape, what his options were.

"What's in it for me?" Ulfur asked.

"In keeping with our agreement," Robiah replied with a touch of impatience, "you stay out of Alliance prison, you keep your nose clean and you can stay a free agent."

Seeal shifted her eyes to Robiah – his deal with Ulfur was considerably different to her deal, as she had guessed it would be. Which agreement would Robiah stick with though when the time came? She knew the answer would always be the agreement that best served Robiah, but at least now, the Elite had promised to make sure Ulfur was returned home.

"I'm already a free agent," Ulfur told Robiah, as difficult as ever. "What do I get if I find out where Khor is now?"

"You get to keep all your teeth," Oneakka replied threateningly.

Ulfur pulled a surprised mocking face as he looked at Oneakka.

Only then he noticed her stood a foot behind Oneakka's shoulder.

Ulfur's expression fell, his eyebrows lowering and his lips lifted in a sneer that she remembered far too well. "What is _she_ doing here?" He shouted.

Seeal moved forward around Oneakka, into the space next to Robiah to face her brother, her chin held high.

"Good to see you too, Brother," she replied, just to piss him off.

Ulfur's upper lip lifted higher, showing all his teeth. "Is it not bad enough that you ruined everything that you reappear now? You brought them here," he accused.

"I see that your conversational skills are as advanced as ever," she replied, glancing aside so he would think her bored of him. "Why don't you be useful and tell his idiot," she gestured to Robiah next to her, "all about Khor and then you won't have to see me ever again."

"You said that last time," Ulfur replied, facing off towards her, his big hands lifting. "When you murdered those men. Remember that?" He asked with that teasing idiotic tone he used to taunt her with. "Have you told Robiah all about that? Now that you're working for him too. Are you finally playing meek and doing what you're told?"

Seeal pressed her teeth together for a second before she answered.

"Did she tell you about those bodies?" Ulfur continued though, looking at Robiah. "I'm sure there are many interested people who would want to know that it as her knife that killed those two gang lords." He looked back at her with a mocking smile. "Wonder what the penalty is for murder on their world."

"That was entirely _your_ fault," she argued up at him. She had forgotten how horribly her neck used to ache at having to look up so high at him all the time.

"Think Robiah would want to know the details of the others that died?" Ulfur baited.

"And why were they there, Ulfur?" She demanded up at him, stepping forward slightly, the shackle line stretching almost to its limit. "Because of you, because you were up to your neck in filth as ever and you needed _me_ to get you out of it."

Ulfur sneered down at her. "I have more stories for Robiah to hear, and I'll trade them all for time out of prison, Cursed Witch."

She stabbed her finger up at him, old anger blazing through her. "Those gang lords died because of _you_, Ulfur; because you called me in to be sold to them as a slave in payment for your debts."

"A role you justly deserve," Ulfur stated and spat at her. He was a good two metres away, but with his height, his spit landed just short of her boots.

She glared up at him, hating him so much in that moment that she wanted nothing more than to gut him.

"Seeal," Robiah warned behind her.

Ulfur burst out in loud laughter, the sound disturbing the Division men in its manic quality and the pure volume.

"Seeal?!" Ulfur asked laughing still. "_That_ is the name you have given yourself? 'Free One'? You name yourself _that_?" He moved forward a step. "How _dare_ you think yourself that way," he shouted at her. "_You_ were the curse on our family, the reason our father died and you think yourself free? You ruined everything!" He shouted loudly and strode towards her, aggression personified and blazing twisted justification in his eyes.

She held her ground, aware of the Division weapons rising, but with trigger fingers that probably couldn't risk actually doing Ulfur any real damage – they needed him, needed what he knew.

She lifted her chin as her viciously furious brother rushed towards her, fists tight. "I curse _you_!" He shouted.

There was a sudden movement and a slide of shadows, and Oneakka was abruptly in front of her, blocking Ulfur and forcing her brother to pull up suddenly.

"Why don't you try raging at someone closer to your own size?" Oneakka asked, all calm and contemptuous, his hood down so Ulfur could see his face.

Ulfur huffed loudly, almost snorting like a wild beast as he towered over the tall Oneakka, eyes blazing.

Seeal couldn't see Oneakka's face, but his head was raised, likely looking Ulfur straight back in the eye.

The tension in the room was high, and Seeal could feel her heart pounding as she watched her brother over the wide back of Oneakka.

Next to her, Robiah was shifting worriedly, his hands up from what she could see in her peripheral vision.

"Perhaps we should all calm down," he suggested, but no one paid him any attention, all eyes were on Ulfur and Oneakka standing off against each other.

"Be careful _little_ warrior," Ulfur warned Oneakka, but Seeal knew he had seen the determination and true danger in the Elite warrior. Ulfur, as big and threatening as he could be, was no warrior. "This is a family matter," he added, turning slightly away from Oneakka. The change in body language marked his submission in the confrontation, not that he would ever admit it. It was perhaps the first smart thing her brother had ever done – he would have no chance going up against Oneakka.

"So now you admit I _am_ family," Seeal couldn't help pointing out.

Ulfur glowered down at her over Oneakka's shoulder and then looked away to Robiah. "I don't want that cursed creature anywhere near me."

"Too bad," Oneakka stated.

"We need to know where to find Khor, Ulfur," Robiah asked. "Just that, no more."

Ulfur shook his head and turned away. The Division's weapons followed him, but Seeal could tell Ulfur would play now, for he had realised it was his only option. "I might be able to find out where he is," he began.

"Khor won't have told this small time worker anything," the tall Elite at the far side of the room said towards Oneakka and Kari. Everyone, including Ulfur paused in surprise, but Seeal understood – the Elite had worked out how to play Ulfur.

Ulfur turned to the Elite. "I am an invaluable part of his network."

He was so easy. Seeal shook her head, and looked up to see Ulfur frowning at her.

"I've inserted myself high in Khor's network; I've worked hard and successfully for Robiah."

Seeal rolled her eyes. "Sold him out to Khor, more like. Probably how you got Khor not to kill you on sight."

Ulfur sneered at her again.

"Seeal, that is not helpful right now," Robiah told her, which was annoyingly the truth.

"He is not to be trusted," she argued.

"And you are, Cursed Witch?" Ulfur asked. "The one chained up. Being led around like a hog beast."

"How high up in Khor's network do you consider yourself?" Kari asked, getting the questioning back on track.

"He listens to me," Ulfur replied boastfully and likely completely untruthfully. "I am very valuable to him. And there is no way that your appearance here will not get back to him. He has other people here. The minute you leave the planet, he'll hear that you're after him."

"It's a moon, not a planet," Seeal corrected him.

In front of her, Oneakka turned his head slightly, not to look right round at her, for he would not risk taking his eyes off Ulfur, but it was enough to communicate a dressing down aimed at her.

She closed her mouth, but only because he had put himself between her and the raging Ulfur just now.

"If Khor will hear about us the minute we leave," Kari said, "then we leave straight for where he is based. Now."

Ulfur shrugged. "I don't know where he is right now." He hadn't gotten any better at lying over the last fifteen years.

"I thought you were high up in his organisation?" Kari asked. "Does he only call for you when he wants you?" She taunted, playing on Ulfur's obvious pride, which Seeal quietly admitted to herself was perhaps something of a family trait.

"Are you just a thug as we thought?" The tall Elite asked across the circle behind Ulfur.

Ulfur turned and glared at the Elite. "Are you saying I'm stupid?" He demanded.

"You're working for a Wraith worshipper," Oneakka put in.

Ulfur snapped his head back round to him. "He is not."

"Ulfur," Robiah said, "no one is saying you're stupid."

"I am," Oneakka objected, and Seeal smiled.

"You take us to where Khor is based, and we'll leave you alone, keeping to our former arrangement," Robiah negotiated.

"And lose my standing with Khor's network?" Ulfur frowned.

"He won't be around to have one anymore," Kari stated.

Ulfur glanced around the circle, his self-interested brain turning over. Seeal forced herself not to make a comment about that.

After a long pause, Ulfur looked back at Robiah. "I help you with this, and I get a full pardon in Alliance space. Clean record."

"A clean record," Robiah agreed immediately. Ulfur would be returned to the Glisi anyway, so it wouldn't matter – as long as the Elite kept to their agreement with her.

Ulfur narrowed his eyes, glancing back to Oneakka who still stood the closest, large arms crossed and no doubt staring up at her brother with no sign of fear. Ulfur liked to use fear to get his way, to use his height and natural strength, but that wasn't possible in this room.

Seeal didn't trust him though – he would be working out a new angle for himself. He always found a way to manipulate things his way, even if it meant getting into more trouble with the wrong people. Considering his past though, making a deal with the Elite would be one of Ulfur's smartest and safest moves ever.

"Alright," Ulfur agreed, turning to face Robiah, his massive arms crossing, assuming the same confident posture as Oneakka. "I'll take you to where Khor is now."

"Where is he?" Kari asked.

Ulfur smiled then, a wide ugly smug smile. "Where no one would think to look for _anyone_. Where _I_ suggested to Khor." He was loving the attention and was making out that he had been the mastermind behind everything. "Somewhere where there are no locals near the Portal, no passing ships, no Wraith, and where no Alliance will ever think to look."

Ulfur smiled again smugly, pleased at himself and his grand ideal hiding place for Khor. Potent silence held as they all waited for him to speak, but Ulfur only kept smiling, enjoying building the tension so that he would seem all the smarter when he announced the location of Khor's base. He had always been an idiot, and clearly the last fifteen years hadn't taught him anything other than how to put on a show.

"Where?" Oneakka demanded impatiently.

Ulfur looked round, his eyes falling on Seeal with a particularly nasty smile.

"The Glisi home world," he replied.

00000000  
TBC


	16. In Snow and Blood

**Chapter 16 – In Snow and Blood**

It was warm and steamy in the bathroom, the long shower they had shared likely having used up far more than his quota of water allocation, if there were such concerns in Atlantis. Teyla certainly wasn't concerned about anything right now.

Stretching her back, she inhaled the sweet-scented steamy air and rocked her hips.

John moaned, his fingers tightening around her sides, his hands strong and so skilful.

Smiling at his obvious pleasure, that had him all but rolling his eyes up into his head, she leaned further forward in his lap and ran her hands up his naked chest, sliding through tickling damp chest hair. The water from their shared shower hung in the air around them, forming droplets across his skin, skin that tasted of man, soap, and sex. She inhaled the scent of his throat as she pressing her breasts against his chest and thereby squeezing him inside her again.

He murmured deeply, relaxed and aroused, against her. His palms caressed up her back and down to her backside in long sweeping motions over and over.

Smiling against his skin, she rocked and squeezed again, massaging him within her, rocking a rhythm that he was echoing with the squeeze of his hands.

Running her lips over the strong line of his jaw and chin and past his lips, she kissed his cheek as she rolled her hips.

"Oh yeah," he murmured, sounding drugged and sedated, which perhaps he was following their repeated joinings, followed by their long hot shower together. He had pleasured her greatly, had knelt in the shower, his mouth on her, her leg over his shoulder. Just thinking of it made her belly burn and the rhythm surge faster inside her. She ground down on him to help relieve the sensation, sitting back enough from him to watch him as she pleasured him.

It was perhaps not the most elegant of locations for them, but a towel draped over the lid of the bathroom's toilet provided a seat with a strong back and at just the right height for her to sit astride him and set her feet against the floor and wall for leverage. He had not protested the suggestion, had protested little at all.

She smiled at his half closed eyes, his body all but immobile as he focused only on the rubbing, squeezing pressure she put around him. He would reach his peak soon, but until then, she simply enjoyed watching him, feeling him deeply, and sliding her hands over his glorious body.

Sex had never been as enjoyable as it was with John, and she had been fortunate to enjoy it frequently over the past week. Who would have predicted there could be such delightful benefits to Nolfi' annoying involvement in the treaty talks, prolonging them far beyond expected. It had allowed her more time to lay with John, to feel free to enjoy him without concerns of time and appearance as there always was back on Athos. Here no one would knock on her door; no one would question where they had been for the last few hours. Here they stayed together through the night, alone and entirely involved in the other. It was true that neither of them had had much sleep, but that could be caught up at any time.

With him she was free to be Teyla, to be womanly and sensual without question and without doubt.

She was free to smile and chuckle at John as he moaned as if in pain as she squeezed him tightly. "Too much?" She asked teasingly.

He replied in a negative indistinct rumble of sounds, his hands running up her back as his eyes opened. She grinned at his smile, delighted that he gained as much pleasure as she did.

He leant forward, his hands around the middle of her back, as he dipped his head and pressed his mouth to the base of her throat. She extended her neck at the blissful sensation and closed her eyes to fully enjoy the touch of his tongue and lips.

And then he leant further forward, leaning her backwards in the support of his hands and forearms, trapping her groin against his, as he lowered his head to kiss one of her breasts.

She adjusted herself in his new engulfing embrace, enjoying the new angle with which the position rubbed him inside her. He was not lying over her technically, but it was close, yet it was deeply pleasurable, and as his mouth slid to her other breast, the pleasure rose even higher.

The teasing the tip of his tongue licked over the tip of her nipple as he lifted his hips to thrust a little deeper into her. Murmuring in a low hum, she grasped at his hair, holding him to her, as she dropped her head back, allowing gravity to stretch her neck and arch her body further against him.

His mouth enclosed fully around her nipple, then lifted sending a rush of breath-warmed air over her wet skin, before his tongue slid around her aching nipple, drawing her back into the hot wet suction of his mouth. She moaned with delight, massaging his scalp as he added short restricted thrusts into her, rocking her in his tight embrace.

Her orgasm built in a rush, rising through her body, blazing and glowing until it exploded outwards. She dropped her head back again and groaned out her pleasure, the sound bouncing around the tiled bathroom.

Under her, as she rocked against him, his arms tightened, pulling her with him as he sat upright again. Loose and deeply relaxed, she surrendered to his hold, letting him draw her against his chest once more. She wrapped her arms around his naked shoulders, laying her fingers along the wide lean lines of the muscles of his shoulders, tight and raised as he held her to him, his body vibrating with the restrained impending orgasm of his own.

She slid her nose and lips against the dark angle of his jaw and throat, breathing against his damp skin, and rocked her softening pleasured body against his. His hands tightened around her backside, his head tilting back as he thrust up into her. She moved with him, pulling her head back enough to be able to watch him again. Muscle and tendon stood out across his sleek throat and chest, his arms tight around her. She ran her hands down across his shoulders, down the flexed bunched muscles of his upper arms, squeezing them as she squeezed internally. He bucked under her, his head lifting and she smiled as he roughly embraced her, his mouth pressed tightly against her throat. He groaned deeply as his body broke free and she felt him surrender in turn.

His own long low groan now echoed through the bathroom as they rocked together, moving with such practiced rhythm through his release. And then, his body spent, he relaxed against her with a heavy sighing breath.

Grinning, she ran her hands up his neck and through his spiky hair, his cheek and lips against her throat. He murmured deeply around his still panting breaths, the vibrations enjoyable through his chest, as she simply slid her hands over him, enjoying the simple pleasure of holding him and the touch of their sweat and humid dampened skin.

It was wonderful to be able to be this free now, to surrender to passion without restraint.

After a long silent moment, John shifted, pulling back from her, and she opened her eyes to look down at him with a smile.

He sat back against the back of the towel covered seat and sighed sleepily. His thighs were warm under her, his hands a lovely warm weight around her hips.

She ran her hands up over his broad attractive chest again, through the light dusting of hair. She so enjoyed petting him, allowed to touch and explore – free and unencumbered.

He smiled up at her in a somewhat smug manner and she shook her head at him, her hair feeling heavy against the back of her head where she had pinned it up earlier.

She opened her mouth to say something, to tease and mock him in his enjoyable satisfaction, but from outside the open doorway to the bathroom, she heard the bleep of her radio link.

Snapping instantly from the sensual moment, she set her hands solidly on John's chest and lifted up off him, his hands assisting her.

"That can't be good," John muttered behind her, as she quickly exited the humid bathroom and stepped naked out into the cold main room of her quarters. She picked up the radio link and activated it.

"Emmagan here," she stated.

"Halling has contacted us," Nalla's voice echoed up from the tiny speaker, which Teyla slipped over her ear. "They have located Ulfur and he is guiding them to Khor's base on the Glisi home world."

Teyla nodded as she moved swiftly across her room to where her clothes were piled up on the floor. "Why there?" She asked as she fished through the pile for her underwear.

"Khor apparently has a working Quantum factory there, using the Glisi snow as the water base, and since the Glisi are nomadic and only near the Portal every seven to eight years, there is no one to discover him. Apparently it was Ulfur's suggestion."

Teyla frowned as she slipped on her underwear, aware that John was moving across the room behind her and that he was talking into his own radio link.

"We have the Portal address?" Teyla asked.

"Halling has sent it, but it is not yet confirmed. Ulfur may be lying or manipulating the situation. They are scouting out the base and will radio in once it is located. Colonel Carter has offered several of her teams to join us when we go through."

"Who is on our scouting team?" Teyla asked as she began to pull on her bodysuit.

"Oneakka, Halling, and Kari, along with five Division troops, Robiah, Seeal and Ulfur," Nalla replied.

Three Elite with some firepower backup should easily be able to storm and take control of Khor's operation depending on its size. "How large is the base?" She asked as she tugged her suit up over her hips.

"Ulfur says it is small, mainly automatic, but there is considerable doubt about his honesty," Nalla replied.

"We'll take Isen with us, and Madesh as he may be needed when we question Khor and his people," Teyla considered.

"I agree," Nalla replied. "I have briefed the others here and they will ensure the treaty delegation do not hear of this too soon."

"We should be done by the time most of them wake," Teyla said as she slid one arm into her suit and then the other, working it up her middle. John's hands suddenly touched against her back, helpfully pulling the suit up her middle and settling it into place over her shoulders. He assisted further by smoothing the material all into place, lingering more than was necessary. She turned and gave him a knowing look. He held his hands up innocently. He was already half-dressed himself, his hair wet but presentable.

"Halling has also sent through our personal cold weather gear, and I have briefed Colonel Carter on how her teams should dress for the Glisi home world," Nalla continued in Teyla's ear.

"Can they send the Daedalus to assist?" Teyla asked as she pulled on her boots.

"They are re-directing it now," Nalla paused, likely having consulted with someone. "They report it should reach the Glisi home world in a little over an hour's time."

"Hopefully that will be well timed," Teyla considered as she reached for her scabbards.

"It will be valuable back-up," Nalla agreed.

"I will meet you by the Portal in a few minutes," Teyla told her.

"Colonel Sumner feels we should go through the Portal now," Nalla added after a beat and Teyla could hear some argumentative voices in the background.

"No," Teyla replied. "If Ulfur is setting us up, then it is better that _we_ handle it and not have Atlantis blood on our hands."

"I agree," Nalla replied.

"I will be with you shortly," Teyla concluded.

The radio link cut off and she deactivated it from her end before she swung her coat around her shoulders, sliding her arms into it as John stepped into view. He was fully dressed now and sliding his sidearm weapon into its holster on the outside of his strong thigh.

"When you say 'Atlantis blood'?" He asked, teasing but serious as well. It was a balance of tone and words that he always had great skill at conveying.

"Quantum factories are often thinly staffed, but with strong security measures," she told him as she reached down for her swords. "On the Glisi world, they will have adapted their guard stations due to the cold."

"We've been told to gear up for cold weather," John reported as he moved towards her. "How cold are we talking?"

"From the few reports we have," Teyla replied as she sheathed her swords smoothly, "extremely cold. The cold plays havoc with all sensors, but appears to protect the Glisi from the Wraith in doing so. The world is blanketed in a thick forest but with an open enough canopy to let through the near-constantly falling snow. There will be no way to take in transport craft though as there is little space between the trees larger than the size of this bed, from what I have I read," she considered indicating the bed beside them.

John's eyes slid to the bed with a light smile, which she found herself copying. "No Jumpers then. What about the Wraith?"

"It is said that they have as little defence against the cold there as normal humans, that they rarely cull the planet because of that," she replied. "It might explain why they are using worshippers there to manufacture the Quantum."

"Could the Glisi be worshippers?" John asked as they headed toward the door of her guest quarters.

"Highly unlikely, the Glisi are highly superstitious and afraid of Wraith, despite rarely ever seeing one. They banish members of their camp for breaking the smallest of laws that they believe might bring the Wraith upon them. No, it is more likely that Khor selected the planet because the cold makes it so uninhabitable to others, and that the local Glisi are only in the area of the Portal every eight years or so. That and they can use the snow as the water base for the Quantum."

As they reached her door, they both paused. "Snow and extreme cold, I'd better pack an extra pair of socks," John joked.

She smiled at his attempt to joke despite the situation. She held his gaze for a long beat, looking up into his handsome eyes, before she made herself reach out and trigger open the doors so that they would leave swiftly. She had work to do now, and pleasure had to be put aside.

They stroke out together into the corridor, and with only a somewhat cautious glance around to see if anyone saw them, they headed away from her quarters.

"I suspect that if we arrive on the Glisi world at night," she continued with a sudden thought, "then the cold will be more of an issue for us. It can kill quickly."

"Great," John muttered. "Killer cold, drug dealers run by Wraith, and questionable intell. Just another day at the office."

0000000

It felt strange to pull on his thick jacket when stood in the warm sunshine on Sunkara, but it was necessary. Oneakka slipped the straps around his middle, through loops and under scabbards to secure the jacket tightly around him. The jacket was thickly insulated between layers of specialist material, and its thickly padded high collar hugged the sides of his neck. He adjusted another strap around his waist, shifting a hidden knife in an inner pocket slightly so the bandolier of small gunss and knives sat more securely against him without getting in his way.

"I am not sure this is the best idea," Halling uttered from Oneakka's right where he too was securing his personalised cold weather armour. Oneakka preferred to wear a separate jacket over his existing armour, while Halling had an entirely new thick coat and armour incorporated. Each Elite had their personal tastes, but the important factor was to remain agile even while wearing the extra thick layers.

"We'll send through the sensor link first," Oneakka repeated.

"If it works with the static on that planet," Halling objected.

"We only need a few seconds of video to check the entire area around the Portal," Oneakka reminded him, the last strap secure around his side. He checked the angle of his guns, and the knives hidden at the small of his back under the cover of his thick jacket. "The energy source in the link and the small force-field should keep it live long enough to send us back the data." He had already quickly cobbled an extra battery into the sensor link anyway, but he didn't tell Halling that. If the link didn't broadcast back, they would still have to go through, so what was the point worrying unnecessarily about it. Oneakka was of the mind to push Robiah through to see what might befall him, but guessed that wouldn't be appropriate given the Division company.

The Division squad looked good sturdy men, so unlike Robiah. They had handled the situation with Ulfur with skill, being forceful yet without an itchy trigger finger, which all spoke of experience and intelligence. He trusted they would be good on this mission as well.

"If the link lasts beyond the initial scan," Si added from the other side of Halling, "it will help boost your signal back through the Portal." He had accompanied the extra craft down to Sunkara from the Sythus, having quickly loaded the craft with their cold weather gear and extra weaponry. He should be on the Sythus, the only Elite left on the ship, but the pilots up in the Central Station were more than well trained and skilled enough to wait for him to return. Oneakka would prefer he come with them, but someone had to stay behind and be a possible last resort sent in to help if necessary.

"The use of the word 'if' is far too frequent in this plan," Halling muttered as he finished adjusting his own coat into place around his weapons.

"There is only one way to find out what is on that planet," Oneakka told him impatiently. "We need to be there now, only then will we discover if our frequencies will work and at what range. We're wasting time talking about this. If Ulfur is right, Khor could have word already that we took him off Feldu." Oneakka doubted it, but there was no way to be sure. "The base could already be being dismantled and it is our only link to get Khor and the Wraith behind this."

Halling nodded, but unhappily. "And if there are Wraith on the Glisi world?" Ulfur had sworn he had never seen a Wraith on the Glisi home world, and Oneakka was inclined to believe him considering his people's extreme aversion to anything that might draw the Wraith to them. Even innocent seven year old girls.

Oneakka frowned at Halling's concern though. "The link will detect Wraith life-signs as well as human, and if they're there, then we deal with them as we always do." Halling was not usually so nervous, but then he hadn't quite been the same since his hip injury many months ago. Oneakka could understand his reticence given the source of their information, but there was nothing to do now but act. They were Elite.

"I will call in Atlantis for you as soon as you confirm the base is there as Ulfur states," Si said calmly. "If the link does not hold once you are on the planet, I will call them in earlier."

"Let's get on with it then," Oneakka said as he turned and headed back across the grass to where Kari stood with Seeal.

Seeal had been given a spare cold weather coat, which looked too small on her, her wrists showing at the end of the sleeves and the hem only just covering her hips. He wasn't too worried about that though, since it had been clear on Feldu that her Glisi blood made her more adapted to the cold. It had been cold and damp there, but she hadn't shown any signs that she had even felt the chill, despite her single layer of clothing. Though the Glisi had to wear thick coats to survive on their own planet, it was clear to him that she would likely fare better than any of the Division or Elite once they reached her home world.

Oneakka turned his gaze to Ulfur, who stood on the other side of the Portal, watched over by the equally coated up Division team members and Robiah. Robiah was talking up to Ulfur, who looked bored in return, an expression that was sinisterly similar to Seeal's. There was a similarity between the siblings, but Ulfur was obviously far bigger in stature, being densely boned and layered in thick tall Glisi fat and muscle. Yet there was something else that Ulfur and Seeal more obviously shared, and it had to do with the stubborn pride in both of them. Oneakka wondered if it was an inherent Glisi trait or one in their family, or perhaps it had been born of their difficult lives. Not that he had any sympathy for Ulfur; he had turned out to be everything Seeal had described him as - a waste of flesh and inherently cruel. He was clearly twisted by what he saw as life having given him a bad deal, and he had focused all that life's worth of anger and bitterness onto his sister. An angry older brother who had let his younger seven year old sister save him, steal food for him and fight off enemies for him, deserved to be left out in the cold as far as Oneakka was concerned.

That he had apparently attempted to get out of his debts, of whatever kind, by selling his sister into slavery to gang lords had almost made Oneakka's blood boil when he had heard it. Men like him belonged in chains themselves. The strong protected the weak, and these siblings demonstrated more clearly than ever before that physical size was not a requirement in being strong. Strength came from something inside as much as from your bones and muscles. Oneakka had always known that, for Teyla had been evidence enough of that, but it was proven to him again today in Seeal and Ulfur like never before.

As he approached Kari, she looked round, but Seeal kept her attention directed off towards her brother. Oneakka nodded to Kari as he reached her side. She had Seeal's restraint line attached to her belt, a situation which Seeal had wisely not decided to test as a possible chance to escape. Kari might stand a good couple of inches shorter than Seeal, but she would not have been easily knocked down.

Kari unclipped the shackle line and handed it to him. "_Why_ are we bringing her?" She asked, indicating Seeal.

"Because she will watch Ulfur," he replied, taking the end of the restraint line in a loose grip. Seeal wouldn't be so stupid as to try and run now, not with so many Elite stunners at hand and only wide open space around the Sunkaran Portal.

"Or he might try to kill her," Kari considered, her tone suggesting she wouldn't care if he did try.

"We need him off centre, and she knows the terrain," Oneakka replied as he watched Halling carrying the spherical sensor link towards the Portal whilst Si headed to the dialling device.

"I haven't been back to that planet in twenty-six yearly cycles," Seeal objected, her first words since they had walked Ulfur out of his shack of a home on Feldu.

Oneakka looked at her, holding her gaze, looking for the change he had sensed in her silence. The confrontation with Ulfur had affected her, but she was trying to hide it. The fact that she had shut up all this time was evidence enough she had been affected though. He saw control and tension in her, her eyes sliding over in Ulfur's direction again. She distrusted her brother with every fibre of her being. Oneakka didn't blame her.

"You lived there, survived there," he reminded her.

"She was a child," Kari argued. "I say Si takes her back up to the Sythus and shuts her away in the brig, one less Glisi criminal to deal with."

Oneakka could understand the suggestion, part of him agreeing with it, but he didn't want Seeal out of his sight, didn't want anyone else in charge of her. She would use any opportunity to escape, and with him and most of the Elite off the ship it would be a perfect chance for her.

"We began our Elite training before the age of seven," Oneakka told Kari, "you forgotten what you learnt then?"

Kari shrugged, which was agreement from her.

"It's in your bones, survival like that, and we might need her," he rationalised.

There was another reason why he wanted to take Seeal though; one that was less rational and which he tried to pretend wasn't a real factor in his decision. He knew what it was like to face your past, to walk into relived horrors. Walking across his devastated planet on a course to kill the Wraith responsible had been a life altering moment for him, and one that he recognised in Seeal right now.

She might not admit it, but she had been running from her home world and Ulfur since she was a child, and everything was coming back on her now. Now was her chance to face that, and to repair what she had done because of it. If they ran into any other Glisi, her presence might cause trouble, but Ulfur seemed certain that there weren't any Glisi anywhere close by. Oneakka imagined Ulfur had an invested interest of his own in not been noticing by his people, being the brother of the cursed child.

Seeal wanted him to return to those people though, and Oneakka could understand that twisted logic. She thought that would repair her brother and what her existence had done to him. She didn't see Ulfur the way Oneakka did. Ulfur was a man, a massive one, and had his own destiny to forge. If he didn't have the courage to go back to his people by himself then what was the point?

The Portal activated and Kari moved away, adjusting her coat around her, ensuring all her weapons were correctly positioned.

Oneakka followed, clipping the restraint line to a metal loop on the side of his jacket. It was a far less secure link, but shouldn't break very quickly, besides Seeal had nowhere to go. He didn't look at her as she followed him towards the Portal, but he knew her eyes would be on Ulfur.

Ulfur in turn had completely ignored Seeal since Feldu, pretending in that foolish way that some did that by ignoring someone it meant they didn't exist. What troubled Oneakka was that Ulfur looked relaxed where he stood beside the Portal, surrounded by the Division squad. His patchy stubbly chin and scraggily hair, paired with the less than sanitary old worn clothing, told Oneakka that Ulfur had his own priorities.

"You need to watch him," Seeal said quietly from behind Oneakka's shoulder as they moved across the flat grass towards where Halling was making final checks on the sensor link in front of the open wormhole.

"That's what you're here for," Oneakka replied without looking round.

"Maybe it'll be in my interests to let him run amok," she suggested, more her former usual mocking self.

In front of the Portal, Halling pulled back his arm and threw the link into the shimmery surface of the Portal. In the instant before it disappeared, Oneakka was pleased to see its force-field activate around it.

"Your brother's not a real fighter," Oneakka replied. "The only way he knows how to fight is to threaten and physically intimidate."

She scoffed at that. "Isn't that what _you_ do?" She asked from behind his shoulder. "Intimate people physically, give them that stern uncaring stare of yours. I bet you came out of your mother with that look on your face. Bet you tried to intimidate the midwife."

Oneakka smiled at that. She was trying to pick a fight with him.

"Say what you want," he told her as they neared the group. "You're coming with us."

Halling and Kari were studying the pad that received the feedback from the link, and Oneakka could see static on the pad's screen but vague imagines were displayed. Good.

"All clear around the Portal," Halling reported as he studied further displays. "No life-signs detected of any kind, no humans or Wraith in the vicinity. The link's getting through on the upper bandwidths, though with considerable static," he added towards Si.

"I will monitor your progress via the link," Si replied with a nod.

Oneakka pulled out a stunner from a hip holster and automatically checked its power reading, despite having done a thorough check on all his weapons as he had put on his thick jacket. "Let's move out."

The Division troops moved forward, their new Elite given repeating rifles held high with the experienced stance of military trained men. Kari stepped through the Portal first, half the Division team behind her, then Ulfur and the rest of them, and Halling and Oneakka following last, Seeal behind them.

Oneakka held up his stunner, and slid into the sharpened awareness of his warrior mindset as he stepped through the Portal.

The cold hit him immediately, like a living creature engulfing him. His breath felt sucked from him as his lungs contracted at the assault of cold air. He instantly inhaled through his nose, allowing his next breath to be partly warmed before reaching his shocked lungs. Ahead of him one Division man was coughing, Robiah most likely, but it was hard to tell from behind with them all wrapped up in the big coats and hoods.

Dark trees stood tall and straight all around them, an unending sea of uniform sentries stretching off into the dark distance in all directions. Thick snow covered the ground, reaching half way up his shins, and snowflakes were falling around them. The only sound, other than their harsh chilled breathing, was the soft crunch of snow under the team's boots.

The forest felt empty around them, bare of life, and unnaturally absent of any leaves or shrubs at ground level. There were only the trees and the icy snow.

Long icicles hung from the lowest dark branches of the trees, like teeth jutting down towards the piles of snow at the base of the trunks. A strong wind must make it through the trees to pile up the snow like that, and right now, Oneakka was grateful it wasn't blowing. Add freezing cold wind to this picture and they wouldn't last long.

"Clear," Kari said softly into her radio link back to Si, which echoed in Oneakka's earpiece.

"Understood," Si replied through the Portal. "I will keep the Portal open as long as possible."

"Which way, Ulfur?" Robiah asked, his voice muffled by his hood and face protector.

Ulfur, who stood straight and uncaring of the cold, turned and pointed off ahead to the right. "That way."

"You're sure?" Halling asked.

"I'm Glisi, I know this world," Ulfur replied, which was rather arrogant considering his history. He strode forward though, taking the lead.

"We're proceeding onwards," Kari reported back to Si, giving coordinates in relation to the Portal, as the group followed Ulfur, all eyes and weapons trained on the trees, with a few also trained on Ulfur.

"How far to the base?" Robiah asked as he followed behind Ulfur, moving heavily through the snow in the midst of his Division team.

"I walk it in minutes," Ulfur replied, which was hardly a clear answer. "I don't know how long it'll take when you've got as small legs as you do."

"Voices down," Halling insisted.

"They don't risk guards this far out," Ulfur replied as he trudged onwards through the trees, his head held high, a thin looking hat sat on top of his tall head. "It's too cold for them."

Oneakka took up the rear of the group with Halling, both sweeping their gaze and their stunners across one side of the forest each.

Oneakka didn't like it. The trees were staggered unevenly, stretching away into the dark and snow, giving no true sense of distance or horizon.

He glanced upwards as they moved around an especially deep area of snow, a larger patch of high distant open canopy above, and he saw some sunlight, high up and breaking through, but it had the colour of a sinking sun. That was not good. As the sun set, the temperature across the forest would drop with it, down into deep freezing temperatures. At least Khor's base would have internal heating, so hopefully they would reach it and storm it before it got too cold outside. If Ulfur did in fact lead them to it.

Oneakka turned slightly, looking back down the way they had come, covering the rear. In the side of his vision, he noted Seeal looked cautious, but not too cold. He had been right that she wasn't as affected as normal humans even here. At least she got something useful from her Glisi heritage, and he didn't have the distraction of a weak woman shackled to him.

Halling moved silently to his far left, his shoulders and arms relaxed, confirming to Oneakka that he hadn't seen anything worrying out among the trees.

The snow began to grow deeper underfoot, and at some points it was piled up in waist high dunes against the sides of the trees. Oneakka had no problem walking through snow, but had to work hard to watch the wide open horizon-less space all around them as he navigated through the trees. This place was far too open, too exposed, but at least the high frozen looking snow dunes against the trees would provide some cover if needed.

The snow had stopped falling, which was a positive, for it would leave their tracks clear for their back-up to follow. Kari repeatedly reported their progress back to Si on Sunkara via the static ridden radio link, but it was clear that it would not hold for much longer.

The trees began to grow closer together, the snow filled space between the deeper and narrower, and their procession slowed to make it over the deep snow banks. The snow was starting to freeze in places, making it crunch louder underfoot and hold more weight, but it was a sign that the temperature was dropping fast.

Oneakka waited at the back of the line as Halling climbed over the biggest of snow banks so far. From its size and the layers Oneakka exposed with a brush with his boot, the bank looked purposefully constructed, but it could be that the wind just favoured building up snow in this place over time.

He nodded Seeal over the bank ahead of him, judging the restraint line to be long enough for the task. She dug a boot toe into a dent of ice in the high bank and slipped up and over it with a skill she probably didn't appreciate. Her younger years on this planet had trained her in ways that she probably wouldn't want to remember, but they were useful.

He set his boot in the same dent she had used and climbed over the bank, finding Seeal waiting on the top for him, the restraint line not long enough for the surprising width of the bank. She jumped lightly down the other side and he followed.

Ulfur was stood with Kari and Robiah on the other side, the Division men keeping careful watch.

"The base is ahead," Halling reported. "Through this area, around a small frozen pond, it's set at the far end."

Oneakka nodded as Kari reported the same over the radio link. She frowned and repeated it, and Si finally confirmed he had received the message in its entirety.

"The link is...up too much," Si added into Oneakka's ear, the report breaking up and severely distorted. "I will...con...Atlanti...ow. Now," Si repeated. "...send through shortly." Kari replied and the open radio link shut down along with the far Portal. Si would contact Atlantis immediately and their back-up would soon follow.

"Let's scout out the base," Kari suggested quietly.

Oneakka nodded and they moved onwards, moving slowly and more carefully placing their boots. There would likely be a sentry on look out close to the base. But then this planet was so cold, they would more likely use a sensor trap to spot anyone sneaking up on them. Oneakka reached into a pocket with his free hand and slipped his own sensor pad out into view. There was static across the screen, but he could see green lights confirming that the pad hadn't detected anything yet, but then how much this planet's energy field restricted sensors was anyone's guess. At least it would mean the base would have similar problems.

Oneakka slipped the pad back into its pocket, as to the left a patch of light was just about visible through the trees. Its shine across the ground suggested frozen water, and the trees were leaning inwards towards it suggesting banks around a frozen pond.

The group kept moving forward, keeping to the trees as they cautiously approached the closest end of the pond, the faint patches of light cast down across its frozen stretch were clearly coloured with the dying light of sunset.

Oneakka noticed that his breath was forming a larger cloud in front of him now and that he could feel the cold more, as if it was slipping inside all the tiniest of spaces between the stitches of his jacket. His legs felt numb along the front of his thighs, his knees chilled. He should have put on more layers, but if they would be fighting soon, so he would warm up quick.

Kari at the front of the group held up her hand, the gesture to stop and find cover.

Oneakka hurried low towards the closest large snow bank between them and the pond; the restraint line tightened for a second, but slackened again as Seeal kept up with him.

He crouched down behind the densely packed snow, the others stretched out to the right behind the long bank. Ulfur had Division men on both sides of him, keeping him under control, but it was anyone's guess how long that would last. If it came down to it, Oneakka would be more than happy to be the one to stun the giant. However, for now, Ulfur was keeping with them, hunkered right down behind the bank. Oneakka suspected it was only the promise of a clean record that kept him here in the first place.

Seeal crouched down on Oneakka's other side, and he glanced round to see her wrap her arms around herself to keep warm against the snow bank's chill. It was the first outward sign she had shown that she even felt the cold.

The light level was darkening by the minute.

Oneakka looked down the line of his varied team and saw Kari peering up over her end of the bank. Ulfur had told them that the base had been constructed partly underground to provide some protection from the cold.

Oneakka rose up carefully and peered over the top of his end of the wide deep snow bank.

The frozen pond was long and narrow, but he could see its end to the right through the trees, where the ground appeared to rise slightly under the snow. Studying that area carefully though, Oneakka could see the signs that it wasn't just another snow bank. Patches of it were too white, the lines too uniform in places. The base. The entrance presumably would be on the right side or the far side. Ulfur had not been clear about that yet, though Oneakka gathered from the faint conversation he could hear, that Ulfur was now giving specifics.

A sudden flutter of sound to Oneakka's left had him turning swiftly towards Seeal. A further light crack and rustle followed and he realised the sound was coming from something high up in the dark branches overhead.

"It's just a raven," Seeal whispered with amusement. "Unless you thought I had turned into one and flown off through the trees."

He lowered his gaze from the darkening branches to her. Her hair, so black, especially so against the white of the snow around them, could easily be the colour of a raven's wing.

He looked away from her, peering back over the snow bank.

"Ulfur can't be trusted going in," she whispered. "Best to stun him now and leave him in the snow until this is finished."

Oneakka had to admit the plan had merit. "We'll need him to draw them out."

Seeal shook her head. "Can I at least have a stunner?" She asked, "A knife, something to defend myself with."

He settled back down on his heels behind the bank and looked at her.

She met his gaze, both their breaths forming clouds between them. "Why would I use it on you when I intend to keep you between me and the trouble waiting in that base?" She argued.

"I was planning to use you as _my_ shield," he lied as he reached to his side and unclipped the restraint line. He stuffed it into a pocket as he reached for her wrist. She extended her wrist with clear surprise.

He looked back up over the snow bank as he tapped in the code to release the shackle from around her wrist and added it into his pocket, shoving it all deeply in and securing it closed. He settled back down, looking down the line to see Kari gesturing to the Division team, as he pulled out a stunner from his bandolier. It was a small, light Litan stunner that didn't have a kill setting. He carried it only because its energy cell was ridiculously long-lasting and it was lightweight on the bandolier. They were soon to enter into battle once Atlantis arrived, and he didn't need to have Seeal a weight attached to him, and besides, going with his instincts, he was almost certain she would be an asset when the fight started. Once it ended, she would no doubt disappear as quickly as she could, but he would deal with that when the time came. Right now, she was more useful to him at his side with a safe weapon in her hand.

He turned to give her his full attention as he held out the Litan stunner towards her, barrel downwards.

He met her gaze directly. "It's in your best interests to stay with us," he told her. "You escape and I _will_ track you down. I doubt you'll want to risk running into some of your relatives out there in the snow, so think before you run off."

She narrowed her eyes as if he was insulting her rather than warning her.

"Unless I can get back to the Portal before all of you," she suggested, still not having reached to take the stunner, no doubt having seen his tight grip around it.

"There'll be back-up arriving any minute and there's nowhere for you to hide back there," he pointed out, though he suspected she would be able to find somewhere.

"I can hide behind a tree," she replied.

"You're not _that_ small," he retaliated.

However, she didn't react to that with the bitter banter he expected. "If _you_ were a prisoner, you know you would take _any_ opportunity you had to escape."

He held her gaze. "We had an agreement," he suggested, knowing that she wouldn't care now.

"Ulfur is on his home planet," she replied. "I have nothing else to gain from this."

He glanced away from her as he saw several of the Division men rising and moving away – the group selected to move forward to scout around the far side of the base. He returned his gaze to Seeal. In no time the fight would begin, possibly sooner than expected if the Division squad were spotted.

"Forget Ulfur, forget Robiah," he told her. "You have information I need, a cell that is waiting for you on Rosenthal, and I intend to make sure you pay for your part in aiding The Traitor," he told her. "You run, and I will _hunt_ you down. I found her, and I can find you again."

Seeal held his gaze, bitter and yet controlled. "I won't rot in a Rosenthal cell," she stated. "I won't be caged by anyone."

"You've been caged since the moment your midwife pulled you from your mother," he told her, calling back to her own previous joke about him. "Maybe it's time you did something _honourable_ and paid the consequences for your past choices. Not Ulfur's, _yours_."

Her eyes widened at his direct point, insulted perhaps, but her mouth stayed shut. She had honour in her, her own version twisted by her life experiences, but his instincts told him it was there. Threats didn't work with her really, she had lived too long under them, but he suspected no one had called her on her honour before. It was time she paid up for her actions, and he wasn't going to sugar-coat that for her. She had kept herself alive in difficult circumstances and had kept to an honour code of her own, but she was intelligent, too much so perhaps, and had ignored the flaws in her code for too long. Maybe that was why she had started to help Robiah, why she had leaked Iketani' location.

He looked away from her haunted angry look, to see the small group of Division men had disappeared from view, having moved ahead to move past the end of the pond to circle around the far side of the hidden base. Kari turned to face him and gestured a series of instructions. She would take Ulfur and the last of the Division men round to this side of the base, where the door was apparently located. Oneakka, the small Litan stunner still in his hand, gestured back he would take Halling around the closest end of the pond and be ready to attack from that side. They would surround the base, ready for when their Atlantis back-up arrived, and they could then attack en mass.

Several things then happened simultaneously in a split second, occurring so fast that Oneakka's logical mind couldn't process them, but his Elite training and instincts triggered before he could understand what was happening.

Several of their sensor pads all bleeped loudly, whilst beside him Seeal shifted to a sudden movement in the far distance to the right, and there was the faintest of sounds behind Oneakka in the distance. As he began to react to all of that, none of it yet making any sense to his brain, he turned back towards the trees behind them, lifting the Litan stunner as he crouched lower, lowering his profile.

Bright shadows shifted abruptly between the trees, not men but ghostly forms, but as quickly as Oneakka dismissed them he knew they had achieved their always intended purpose – to distract prey.

In that split second of realisation, the movement to the far right revealed itself.

The explosion was blinding and he heard cries of pain and shock around him as he was shoved down against the snow. He felt Seeal's weight fall onto his lower legs momentarily, but everything else was lost in a sea of light and a loud ringing that burrowed into his ear drums. He felt one burst under the assault, the pain excruciating, but familiar.

The world swam around him, dull in sound and image, but he quickly managed to rise up off the snow enough to fire the Litan stunner towards the moving blurring shapes heading towards him. He heard bodies dropping, heard Kari shout, then bursts gunfire and a cry of pain.

Shaking his head, the world righted itself into more understandable shapes and Oneakka looked out among the trees to see Wraith rushing towards him. He clocked ten of them, and a further two lying on the snow. They must have been hibernating high up in the trees, Oneakka realised, the cold not having affected them as much as the stories had suggested, but they were here now and surely had to be the ones involved in the new Quantum.

All this Oneakka processed as he got up from the snow, Wraith stunner fire blasting over him, defused instantly by the fibres woven into his coat and through his armour beneath. He felt a numb wave over his face, but most of the stunner fire had been defused by his clothing. He drew a second gun out of a holster as he moved, and was rapidly firing both weapons before he was even upright.

He became aware of the press of Seeal's shoulder against his back, wisely using him as a shield from the stunner fire.

To his left he heard, mostly through his one good ear, Kari shouting orders to the remaining Division men. Oneakka glanced aside briefly to see her blazing in defusing stunner fire. One Division man and Ulfur were lying on the snow, leaving only one Division man left, who was clambering over to the other side of the snow bank dragging a shocked Robiah with him. Robiah had blood trickling down from his nose and ears, but he looked intact.

Stunner fire hit the snow bank next to where Robiah had just been, which drew Oneakka's attention down to the dark shape of Halling, lying still in the snow near his feet, the splattering water of the snow falling over his prone form. Blood was dripping from his upturned ear and there was a splinter of wood protruding from his upper shoulder.

Rage rushed up in Oneakka at seeing his friend down, but he quickly locked it down with an ease that was painfully familiar and almost easy now with so much use.

"Over the bank," he shouted to Seeal as he turned his full attention back to the oncoming Wraith.

To the far left he heard another explosion, too far away to be blinding or deafening, at least for his section of the team, but it shook branches overhead and one cracked and fell, landing to the left, sending up a powdery splash of snow. A Wraith burst over it, flying at Kari, using the distraction to its advantage. Oneakka didn't have time to help, for the Wraith in front of him were growing in numbers far too quickly, jumping from tree to tree like animals, getting far too close too quickly. A flash of metal to his left and he heard Kari draw blades, which was fast followed by the hiss and cry of pain from the Wraith that had tried to jump her.

Oneakka kept firing at the approaching Wraith, but they were spreading out, darting out from the trees. They weren't the heavy stupid drones, these were more the intelligent warrior Wraith, and they were working their advantage of numbers. How could so many have been hiding up in the trees? Was there a ship somewhere overhead, sending down the Wraith in waves through a widened space between the trees?

A hand brushed against his side and he felt Seeal pull free one of his guns from his bandolier. She began firing around his right side, allowing him to cover a more precise area, but the Wraith were engaging directly with Kari to the left.

They had few options left, and none of them allowed Oneakka time to drag Halling out of the line of fire.

"Back," Oneakka repeated his order to Seeal as he took the few steps back towards the snow bank. He felt her moving behind him, her weapons fire pausing as she climbed over the bank, to then start firing again. The screaming of Wraith, the pounding of another explosion from the distance, and the constantly loud buzz of defusing stunner fire didn't allow Oneakka to hear Seeal's shouted words completely, but her hand tugging on the back of his jacket, communicating he could now move over the snow bank himself.

He took the chance and glanced aside and back quickly, getting a quick mental picture of where the bank was. "Down," he shouted loudly to Seeal before he fired rapidly forward, reached back, put one hand on the dense icy bank and threw himself over it. He landed to the sound of Seeal's and the Division man's covering fire. Robiah was keeping low behind the bank, one hand pressed to a bleeding ear, a gun clutched in his other hand, but his attention was directed off towards the pond behind them.

Oneakka didn't have time to look to see if there was more danger incoming from that angle, for the Wraith had arrived on the other side of the snow bank. The stunner fire kept blasting, but the closest Wraith leapt forward, soaring towards Oneakka over the bank, feeding hands forward and a snarl on his face.

It was a typical stupid Wraith move.

The stunner unhelpful at such close range, Oneakka dropped the smaller Litan weapon into the snow at his feet whilst reaching back to the hilt of a long knife. He brought it up and round, slicing cleanly through both forearms of the Wraith. It screeched as it fell back onto the bank, its blood shockingly colourful across the snow.

"Back," Oneakka ordered the others as he took swift steps backwards to give himself room to fire. He slipped the knife back into its sheath with speed earned from a lifetime of battle and training, and drew out his toughest blaster from his hip. He lifted the weapon and fired as the closest Wraith perched on top of the bank leapt towards him. The blaster shot a large burning hole straight through its forehead. It fell instantly, but others were quickly replacing it, hissing as they leapt up over their dead at Oneakka.

Around him, Seeal and possibly Robiah were firing past him, taking out some of the Wraith, whilst Oneakka filled his other hand with another of his fastest repeating guns and blasted away. To the far left, still on the far side of the snow bank, Kari was a blurring wash of blades, stunner fire defusing over her, and Wraith blood flying around her. The remaining Division man was to Oneakka's left, and was firing at the Wraith attacking Kari, providing her with some cover, which Oneakka tried to add to around his own targets.

But the Wraith seemed to be pouring at them, using pure numbers to get close enough to swipe claws at Oneakka's hands. At least the growing piles of stunned, dead and injured Wraith were creating obstacles of their own now, allowing Oneakka to dig his boots into the snow and hold his ground, Seeal sheltering behind him as she fired past him. The Division man was crouched in the snow to Oneakka's left, firing efficient fast blasts, Wraith stunner fire defusing over him, and thereby protecting Robiah who was using him as a shield as he fired forward as well.

Only then, Oneakka caught flashes of movement high up in the trees.

"Above us," he shouted and next to him Robiah began firing upwards. A Wraith body crashed down into the snow just right of Oneakka.

This was no good. "All back," Oneakka commanded again. "Seeal stay behind me, Kari retreat back to the pond," he hollered towards where she had now managed to get over the snow bank despite battling off a vicious circle of Wraith.

Moving swiftly backwards, allowing Seeal's hand on the back of his jacket to guide him around the trees, Oneakka watched the snow bank grow further away. Halling was on the other side of it still, vulnerable to be fed on at any moment, if he hadn't already been. Anger surged up through Oneakka again and he paused in his retreat as he blasted faster at the encircling Wraith. Another two Wraith dropped down from the trees above, scattering snow and pieces of branches over them, but also taking out a few attacking Wraith under their weight.

A frightened cry from behind, likely from Robiah, snapped Oneakka's attention back away from blind anger, and he felt Seeal cowering closer behind him as more stunner fire burst over him. The trees on either side of him were smoking with repeated weapons fire and he swore one of them smelt as if it had caught fire.

"It's clear to the pond," Seeal shouted behind him between blaster shots.

To the left, Kari was growing closer, jogging backwards through the snow, firing constantly, Wraith blood splattered over her coat.

The frozen pond to their backs would have to be their defence for now, and they would just have to hold back the onslaught until their back-up arrived, which hopefully would be soon because there seemed to be even more Wraith appearing between the trees.

Another cry from behind had Oneakka glance aside to see that the Division man was down, his face pressed down into blood stained snow, two fallen dead Wraith lying beside him at the foot of a tree. Robiah was still moving though, slipping in with Seeal in behind Oneakka. He wasn't sure how long he could be a shield both of them successfully, even with the Wraith stunners defusing over him.

The trees were growing closer around him now as he hurried back through the snow, and he felt Seeal's hand flatten against his back stopping his retreat. They were at the pond's edge. He glanced aside to see Robiah hunkering down behind a tree, the splashing peppering snow limiting his ability to return fire. Seeal had chosen to stick behind Oneakka, and was firing up into the branches of the canopy.

Kari had reached the pond's edge several trees away to his left, but the situation was not looking good. The Wraith needed only to surround them from behind, and he didn't fancy battling on the frozen pond. He and Kari could hold off the Wraith when fighting back to back, but with the Wraith attacking from above, and Seeal and Robiah to protect...

They need a new plan. He glanced over his shoulder really quickly, trusting Seeal and Kari' covering fire, and saw nothing on the far side of the pond. He snapped back round to keep firing.

"Seeal, Robiah, get across the pond, keep behind us," Oneakka ordered. "Both of you run!"

"Seeal, come," Robiah shouted from behind Oneakka's shoulder.

Oneakka felt her hand leave his back as Kari began to near his left side, adding her defusing protection to their retreat. If Seeal and Robiah could get across the pond, get through the so far Wraith-free trees running up an incline on the far side, they might get away. They could then circle round back to the Portal and get help here faster.

Oneakka wasn't sure if that was going to work, but there were no other options right now.

Still firing into the army of Wraith encircling them, Oneakka couldn't risk looking over his shoulder again to see Seeal and Robiah's progress, or even if they were still alive. He had to just keep on firing.

The blaster in his right hand flashed a warning red light – it was almost out of power. He dropped it and pulled a new one out of a holster and began firing again.

"Back to back?" Kari shouted.

"Are they away?"Oneakka asked.

After a tiny pause Kari replied. "They went over the pond. I saw several Wraith dead on the far shore."

That was all they could know for now.

Oneakka nodded as he fired. "Back to back," he agreed as he edged to the left to meet Kari so that they could hold off the Wraith from all directions.

Only suddenly there was a break in the hassling army of approaching Wraith.

He saw one Wraith running towards them in the near distance, only to stop with his hands held up. There was a large spherical piece of tech in his hands, which he pulled back and threw. Oneakka didn't recognise the technology, identified it only as Wrath tech. Another explosive device most likely.

He tracked it with one gun and fired, hoping to trigger it over the Wraith's heads, but the blast danced over a force-field.

Cursing, Oneakka stepped backwards, taking an in-breath to shout to Kari, but a sudden surprisingly red light blossomed out from the globe as it sailed through the air.

The red light filled Oneakka's vision, followed instantly by a strange flickering green, and then he felt a rushing sensation he had never felt before wash over him.

He lost feeling in his arms, his weapons dropping from his hands, and the snow rushed up at his face.

He hit the cold, hard frozen ground, and his consciousness fell instantly into blackness.

000000  
TBC


	17. Honour

**Warning: **Character death within next couple of chapters. I promise it's not John, but it is one of the 'good guys'.

**Chapter 17 – Honour **

On any other day if someone had told her to run full pelt across a frozen pond, Seeal would have told them not to be so stupid. Today however, she only wished she could run faster across it.

The hissing and growling of Wraith was like a roaring wave filling the forest behind her, chasing her in mind as much as in body, and she almost skidded across the deeply frosted ground as she heard an especially loud hiss close behind. The hairs on the back of her neck, across her arms and up her spine screamed to her that there was a Wraith following her across the unstable snow crusted frozen pond, but she was not stupid enough to look over her shoulder.

She just ran.

And it brought back cold old memories as snowflakes fell down around her as she made it halfway across the water.

The bright flares of Wraith stunner fire blasted past her repeatedly, impacting on the far side of the pond in small bursts of light and splatterings of snow and ice.

Ahead of her, Robiah skidded again and stumbled, almost tumbling down onto the ice, but he managed to get one hand out against the ice, halting his fall. He looked back though, back towards her, and she almost cursed him for it. She could not stop herself watching his face in that expanded moment, and saw, just as she damn well knew she would, horror and fear speeding its way across his expression. She watched him lift one of the weapons he held and bright blue stunner fire shot out towards her.

Crying out in angry fear, she lowered her head and darted to the left, despite knowing that he couldn't be aiming for her.

Behind her, she heard something heavy hit the ice, heard it growl and then suddenly her left leg was tugged back and out from under her. She fell down towards the surface of the frozen pond, snow falling from her hair as she twisted round towards the tight grip around her left calf. A Wraith's pale monstrous face hissed at her as it tightened its claws around her boot and tugged her towards where it lay.

Panic rushed up her throat in a way she had never experienced before as she felt the cold scrape of ice under her backside and side as she was pulled towards the creature intent to suck her life from her.

She had seen Wraith before, most especially as a child when she and Ulfur had been living on the streets of various market towns on a variety of planets. Regardless as to how many of the local population the Wraith could kill before the rest hid away successfully, the monsters always had the back-up homeless population to feast on. She had many frightened memories of running from the Wraith, of slipping through alleyways, climbing drainpipes, and scrambling down sewer holes. Others had not been as fast as she had been, and she had seen more than her fair share of what a body looked like after it had been fed upon. Yet in all those experiences, over so many years, she had had little direct face-to-face moments with a Wraith; and certainly never an entire forest full of them flooding towards her. This wasn't a culling, it wasn't a fight, it was a full on battle.

She wasn't used to fighting like that. She could take anyone on one-to-one or against a small group. Her years of fighting successfully in the pits had trained her that a proper fight was won by the one who struck the fastest and dominated first. Real fights were over in minutes, sometimes even seconds. Whoever was the more brutal, the most explosively violent won a true fight. You had to get in the shots quickly and in a way that would incapacitate your opponent, then it was just a matter of following up with another winning punch or elbow, or, depending on the situation, you then had time to run. In the pits, she had been a queen in her fights - being brutal and unexpected. Those skills had literally kept her alive in that she had won money for food, but they had also been necessary when she had lived in dark unprotected streets. A young girl, with an absentee brother, had needed to be able to fight for herself, and she had never allowed a male to lay a hand on her without responding with her patented explosive violence. In that world, she knew how to fight, how to keep her head, how to understand a fight, assess and respond with training that had been drilled into her by life and the pit fights. On Dreamstation, she had been respectfully feared, and only a few times had she actually had to fight there as she had in the pits. Those few occasions had served to spread rumours and thereby had prevented more fights. She had ruled in Dreamstation, and out of it, on any world, she trusted her skills. They had been hard won and she religiously maintained her fitness to keep herself fresh and ready for a fight at any moment.

All that was unbelievably different from what she was now facing. When she had seen the Wraith appearing through the trees, had felt the explosion detonate only meters away, she had been thrown way outside her comfort zone and skill set. Never in her life had she seen so many Wraith and all heading in her direction. It had almost been unreal, shocking her already dazed senses following the explosion, that it had taken her precious seconds to assess and react. In that moment, Oneakka had already been up on his feet, guns blazing, and stunner fire dancing over him. He and Kari had stood boldly, firing out into the mounting sea of Wraith, with nowhere to retreat to, no base, no alleyways through which to lose them, no ship waiting to fly them away, or airlock out of which to throw the enemy. There had only been the primitive fact of predator and prey in the open dark forest of her own home world. And she knew, without doubt, that she was firmly in the prey category.

She had never felt so terrified, so useless and so out of her element.

However, that thought had actually sparked her into action. From behind the shield of Oneakka, she had pulled free one of his guns and opened fire. It had helped, had made her feel stronger, less afraid, and more like herself. But it had only been a drip within a sea of death approaching her. Even the Elite had seen that, one of their own down in the snow, Ulfur beside him, and all but one of Robiah's Division squad likely dead.

The only hope she and Robiah had were to get away, to run for their lives, the Elite working as a shield to hold off the stunner fire for them. But, who were they kidding; the forest was filled with Wraith. It wouldn't take long for them to sweep around the pond and cut her and Robiah down as they reached the incline rising up from the far shore. No one could survive the numbers of Wraith here, no one except perhaps Elite.

And she wasn't an Elite.

But, that didn't mean she would lie down and accept her death at the hand of a Wraith.

And so, the creature's hand a tight clamp around her boot, its alien yellow eyes staring at her above a wide hissing mouth full of sharp teeth, she kicked out at her impending death. Her boot slammed into the Wraith's face, but it didn't stop it the monster from pulling her across the ice, towards its body, towards its other hand lifting, the palm opening at its centre to show the gaping feeding hole with teeth of its own.

Seeal brought round the heavy gun she had taken off Oneakka, aimed it at the Wraith's face, and squeezed the trigger twice. Both her shots were thrown off by the tug of the monster though, but one at least cut a blackened channel through the flesh of its shoulder. It hissed, so she kicked at its face again, the added weight of whatever the Elite had filled her boot heels with actually helping. She felt bones breaking under the assault before she pulled back her knee and again levelled Oneakka's gun at the mouth of strangely sharp teeth – why would a Wraith need teeth? She pulled the trigger and this time her aim was true - part of the Wraith's head scattered off behind it in a blast of burning rotten smelling flesh. Its grip around her leg didn't let up through, in fact it tightened, and numbness rushed down her foot, the squeeze of the grip blocking her circulation. Panicked more than she would ever admit to anyone, she blasted the gun at the arm, severing it at the elbow. But, the pressure didn't let up and she could still feel the Wraith's fingers moving. Letting out a yelp, she struck down at the severed hand with the weighted butt of Oneakka's gun. She slammed it into the thick alien knuckles twice before the grip lessened and began to drop away. She kicked her leg, dislodging the hand, and hurriedly scurried backwards across the ice, away from the dead Wraith and the still spasming hand.

Only then she saw the movement in the trees to the side of the pond, and became aware of Robiah firing off into the trees.

Wraith were leaping through the branches like some sort of hideous mutated spiders.

She fired up towards them, blasting burning holes up through the branches and snow. Two Wraith fell, struck by her and Robiah's fire as she heard him shouting at her to run – like she needed that advice.

Getting her feet back under her, whilst moving backwards on the frozen pond and still firing up at the group of Wraith, she managed to get moving again.

She didn't dare take her eyes off the group of Wraith who had clearly broken away from the rest to hunt her and Robiah in their escape. Two more Wraith tumbled from the branches, one crashing down so hard that it actually went down through the thick ice into the pond beneath. The sound of cracking ice made Seeal decide to give up on the shooting and get back to the running.

She kept firing as best she could as she ran though, keeping to the straight line from before, thereby keeping in the protective space provided by the Elite from the stunner fire. Robiah, ahead of her by only a few strides, began clambering up the bank, only for a sudden shadow to slide through from the left. Seeal fired towards the Wraith as it leapt down from the trees, but it was too quick, and suddenly it was upon Robiah, thrusting him back off the bank and back onto the ice. Robiah screamed out in shock and pain as he hit the ice hard, but Seeal had a good shot, too good really considering that her momentum was already carrying her towards the Wraith and Robiah. She squeezed the trigger of the heavy Elite weapon twice, impressed yet again at its power as it stuck the Wraith with enough force to push it up and back off Robiah. Robiah, thinking far quicker than she had ever given him credit, had managed to hold onto the two guns he held and he lifted both of them up towards the Wraith and added his fire to hers. The Wrath was dead before it even fell back against the bank.

She didn't take time to celebrate; instead she skidded to the frozen shoreline next to the creature and began to clamber up the bank, the cold snow freezing her fingertips. "Cover me," she shouted to Robiah, not caring that he might have been hurt, because clearly he could fire. He fired several times as she got up onto the bank, and only then did she turn and sweep her gaze up around the trees surrounding them.

One Wraith leapt through shadows up to the right and she tracked it with Oneakka's gun, and fired off several quick blasts, trying to keep behind the trees and not lose sight of it as Robiah made his way up off the pond.

"I'm good, I'm good," Robiah panted as he scrambled up alongside her, and his distraction was enough for the Wraith to pause in its spidery leaping to watch its prey, giving her the direct line of sight she needed. She kept firing as it jerked and began to fall through the branches. It crashed down into the snow, sending it powdering up through the trees.

"Come on!" Robiah shouted as he ran to her right, heading up the incline. "Come on."

Taking one last look up and around, and satisfied that no more Wraith appeared incoming for now, she followed him. Stunner fire was still blasting through the trees, but it seemed less than before, and in no time, she and Robiah would be up high enough to be out of danger from being hit by a random shot.

The snow was deeper here, having been piled up against the incline by the wind across the pond, and it made their pace seem horridly slow, especially when she expected at any moment to feel another Wraith hand at her back. Just the thought of it, combined with the hissing roaring army of Wraith back on the other side of the pond, made the panic rise up faster through her chest. She dug her feet into the snow and found some more speed, the memories of how to move quickly through the glowing snow returning. She caught handholds of the trees around them to aid her up the slope faster, while glancing repeatedly up and around at the trees and back down the incline, expecting more Wraith at any moment.

Except there were none.

As she ran, she looked back repeatedly down the slope to catch glimpses of the far side of the pond to where Oneakka and Kari still stood. They weren't retreating. They were holding their ground against the Wraith army.

"Why aren't they pulling back?" She asked out loud, her heart hammering loudly in her ears, as she kept moving, but couldn't seem to look away from the sight below. She could see part of Oneakka's back and one arm held up and out, firing constantly at the Wraith with no sign at all that he was in any way afraid despite the onslaught of monsters aimed at him.

"Let them do their work, come on," Robiah replied from just ahead of her, his breathing loud and shaky as he navigated around dark trees.

She kept up with him, but kept looking back down the slope. "Pull back," she muttered towards the increasingly distant Elite.

She had never understood the Elite, had always scoffed at their foolish martyr complex. Living as they did, their lives thrown at the Wraith like they were a live grenade, had seemed stupid, despite its apparent nobility. She had heard the same stories that everyone had, that Elite strode into rooms full of Wraith to battle them down and die on their feet. That the Elite sacrificed themselves daily in foolhardy and risky campaigns. All for the greater good of the Alliance, all for the cause, and that had always annoyed her. Why train up such good fighters and then just waste them like that? Like those that enjoyed extreme events and sports for the thrill, she had always imagined the Elite that way. That they got their kicks out of fighting against overwhelming odds, until one day, far too soon, they died painfully and bloodily.

They were called heroes. She had called them stupid.

They threw their freedom away like it meant nothing.

Yet, here she was, free to run away, to run from the Wraith and her impending imprisonment as well now, and yet she found herself looking back to the Elite.

There were too many Wraith, too many to hold back, too many ways to die, and yet Oneakka and Kari held their ground, held back the tide for her and Robiah to get away, and they were holding still, waiting until their back-up arrived.

It was the stupidly noble heroic thing to do.

And at any moment, she would witness those heroes die.

"We have...to get to...the Portal," Robiah panted just ahead of her. "Get Atlantis' sup...support here...now...warn them."

Yes, there was support on the way, just likely too far behind to help Oneakka and Kari.

She reached up and caught hold of a thick branch, icicles falling from it as she did, and took a breath to answer Robiah when a sudden flash of light burst through the trees from behind, flashing red and then green, the strange pattern dancing over the snow ahead of her.

And then a sudden engulfing silence.

Seeal pulled up short and turned, her breath huffing out loud and fast in the eerie quiet as she looked back down the snow-covered slope to the pond far below.

She could still see part of the space through the trees on the other side of the water, and all of it was littered with bodies. Frowning at what she saw, she realised that they were Wraith, lying across the snow by the hundreds, the hissing and loud assault having abruptly silenced.

Her eyes tracked to where Oneakka and Kari had stood only to see that they too were lying on the ground, unmoving.

What had happened?

She moved back down the slope a few steps, angling around some trees to gain an improved view, but all she could see were bodies.

She tightened her grip on Oneakka's gun, watching desperately as the Elite remained motionless.

Were they dead?

Only then there was movement close to them. She watched as two heavy thickly set Wraith drones stepped into view, their thick plated armour dark against the snow around them. Their bone masks angled down towards the fallen Elite as another stepped forward between them. Except this time it wasn't a drone or a warrior, this Wraith stood tall and slim, and had a full head of shockingly bright red hair.

A Queen.

A new kind of fear turned Seeal's stomach and threatened to squeeze her throat shut.

A Queen here, on her home world. Looking down at the unmoving Oneakka and Kari.

And there was nothing Seeal could do from so far away, against Wraith, against a Queen.

"We have to go," Robiah said in as loud a quiet voice as he could behind her around his own fast panicked breaths.

"They're going to kill them," she found herself replying, though it was possible that they were already dead.

"And us with them if we don't go," he replied. "Seeal, come on."

But she couldn't look away.

The Queen gestured to the drones beside her and one reached down over Kari. Seeal steeled herself, unable to look away from the impending horrific moment. Yet, the Wraith, instead of slamming its feeding hand down against Kari, instead took a strong grip of her coat, lifted her partly off the snow and proceeded to drag her out of view.

From the little Seeal could see, Kari hadn't looked dead, just unconscious.

The Wraith hadn't fed on her. Why not?

They wanted the Elite.

To torture?

Or maybe they were just moving the Elite to where the others were being fed upon. Ulfur, the other Elite and the Division personnel - they were all left back there, vulnerable in the cold snow

"Seeal," Robiah ordered.

Down on the far side of the pond, the Queen looked up.

Seeal darted backwards, panic again chasing away all other thoughts.

She turned and ran.

Robiah fell in step with her as they scrambled up through the snow. Quickly they reached the height of the incline which finally led to a flat section of ground beyond. Her legs burning, Seeal headed in a straight line away from the Queen, Robiah falling behind her.

"Shouldn't we-?" He asked to her back.

"No, this way," she called back, leading him across the plateau and down the far side. She slipped on the icy snow in her haste, dropping to her backside and began sliding down the slope. It turned out to be the faster option anyway, and she slid and slipped her way down, Robiah tumbling past her as she reached the bottom. She made a vague grab to help him up as she headed to the left. They needed to make a large loop round back towards the Portal.

"No...Wraith," Robiah panted out, but she had understood his meaning. No Wraith were following them, which was a good thing, but it was also likely that the Wraith were simply going to wait for them to head back round to the Portal.

"They're more interested in the Elite than us," she guessed breathlessly, dragging in cold air into her overly stressed lungs. She felt blazingly hot under her coat though, but it wouldn't last on this planet.

She looked off back to the left, where, on the other side of the tree covered hillside, a Wraith Queen had the Elite and her brother.

"They must have followed us to the base or were sleeping in the trees," she wondered out loud. There had been far too many to have been simple guards watching over the Quantum base, and where had they come from? Where had the Queen come from? From the base?

"They knew...we were...coming," Robiah replied breathlessly, slowing to a fast jog, his face deeply flushed. "Ulfur must have warned them somehow."

"Or this was all a trap in the first place," Seeal considered, her throat hurting from both the cold and their fast escape. All the stories she had heard growing up here had all said that the Wraith couldn't tolerate the cold on her home world. It was legend, but also fact in that the Wraith rarely ever culled here. If they tried, they only ever managed to capture a few Glisi at the most. So why were there so many Wraith here if not in preparation for the Elite?

"They wanted the Elite, why?" She asked Robiah and the universe at large.

"We don't know that they wanted them specifically," Robiah argued. "Any Wraith that capture Elite will torture them, try to learn what they can from them."

"Read their minds if they can," she finished. "Use the new Quantum on them." She had already put together the pieces of overheard conversations between the Robiah and the Elite. There had to be few reasons why the Elite would be worried about the Wraith being involved with Quantum, and she had heard enough to form a theory.

Robiah looked away, worry making him frown around his paling panicked face. "Possibly," he admitted, confirming her theory, "but all we can do is get help to them as quickly as possible. Get to the Portal," he finished and began moving forward faster again.

She followed, but she kept looking back over her shoulder.

She could not help herself from imagining the interrogation. The Elite brought round, drugged, and their minds read as the Wraith fed on them...they had ten minutes perhaps? It had taken the group longer than that to get from the Portal to the base. To be there in time to save them, Atlantis' personnel would need to be already through the Portal and halfway there. They wouldn't know what they were walking into. She and Robiah had to warn them, to send them the right way to help. They would need to know to approach from this angle as well as from behind.

But by then, the Elite would probably be dead.

She looked back over her shoulder. There was no reason why she should feel so conflicted. There was nothing she could do.

She ran on faster, moving swiftly ahead of Robiah.

Running through the snow, the darkness lowering throughout the forest, the promise of death behind her, it was almost as if the years had fallen away and she was seven years old again. Snow around her, the cold burning in her throat, and her chest full of wayward emotions, it was as if no time had passed at all.

Since the night she had been chased away by her own people. She imagined that they had all been excessively relieved once she had gone, except perhaps Mother, but it had been difficult to understand her, especially from a seven year olds point of view. She had always been cold and distant, whilst Father had striven on, determined to do his duty to his family, even if the rest of the camp hadn't wanted them anywhere close. Father had been the only one who had seemed to care for her, who had told her, in the quiet evenings around the night fire, that she was just different, that she was not cursed as the others believed.

But then the culling had struck. The Wraith had arrived through the trees in the late hours of a day, scattering the camp in all directions out into the trees. And even while the Wraith still hunted, a group of Glisi had turned on her. Father had tried to protect her, but they had been so angry. The memories of that night had been shut tightly away in her head all these years, but suddenly they seemed to be pouring out into her mind's eyes, replaying in vivid detail. She had been too young to understand the details of what had happened, if it had been a fight or a beating, she just knew that Father had fallen to the snow, blood staining his face and the ground.

They had blamed her for that too, had chased her and Ulfur out of their home, Mother sitting out the back, her face empty of care and devoid of emotion. With no support and only fear in her heart, Seeal had run through the snow, Ulfur trailing crying behind her, through the ruined camp, and through the trees for the distant Portal.

And now she was running away again.

As she had been ever since that day when Father had been killed. And now it was very likely that Ulfur was lying dead back by the Wraith base.

More blood on the snow because of her.

Father had tried to save her and had died, and now Ulfur would follow him to the world of the Ancestors. Along with the Elite.

And she was running away.

Oneakka had told her to be honourable, despite not believing she had any.

Until these last few days, she had not truly believed there was such a thing as honour, as noble sacrifice. Because, ultimately, hadn't her angry disbelief in Elite sacrifice reminded her of how her father had been killed. If their family had just moved away from the camp, left for another planet, he would still be alive, and maybe she and Ulfur could have led a more normal life. Why hadn't Father done that? Why had he and Mother followed along behind the camp like rejected strays? Of course there were no answers for her, and that had bred the anger that raged up inside her now. Stupid stubborn men making stupid decisions.

Oneakka had stood between her and the Wraith, and in front of her in the face of Ulfur's rage.

No one had cared enough to do that for her since Father.

Stupid heroic Elite.

He wanted to put her in prison for the rest of her life, to clip her wings forever, and force her to rot away in the cold dark, yet he had lectured her on her honour, on paying dues for her choices.

Choices she had made to keep herself alive, to fight for her freedom against the universe that had destroyed any chance of a normal life she might have had. That had ruined her entire family because of a genetic twist of fate that had been her birth. How was it her fault? She had done what she had needed to do to survive. It was not her fault.

Yet, weren't those thoughts horribly familiar? Weren't they the same words Ulfur had thrown at her for so many years? He had used them to justify all he had done, all the crimes, drugs, and debts. All the wrongs in his life had been her fault, not his.

Was she really any different?

For ten years she had worked in Dreamstation, where known criminals had hidden away in dark rooms to scheme and plot. She had watched as Creass had worked with Iketani as if it were none of her business – what had she expected they had talked about? The best gardening techniques to grow bloom lilies?

Ten years she had stood back and done nothing except create the perfect safe place for all those criminals to work. She had told herself that what they did at the station was none of her business, as long as they kept to the rules. Yet, in not acting, not listening, and pretending it had nothing to do with her, she had in a small way, played a part in all the evil deeds completed through Dreamstation. She was tainted by it.

And Iketani – she had known what that creature was, but had in fact been protecting the traitor. Iketani, and how many countless others, had used her own laws against her, no, her own _disregard_, to go about their dark deeds under the safety of Dreamstation.

Just as her own people had done to her, she had turned her back to the truth of what was happening. Except whereas the truth back then had been that she was simply an innocent child, the truth on Dreamstation had been that she had been aiding criminals by turning her back. She had allowed them complete freedom to do what they had wanted.

How many political assassinations had been organised through the station? How many civilian murders had been planned there? How many people had been forced into slavery and destitution by the actions of those using Dreamstation?

How many children had lost their homes and families?

She had ignored all of that, had turned her back to it, as the Glisi had done to her.

She _was_ guilty.

She felt the tears in her eyes and hated herself for them, but knew they were perhaps the first honest expression of emotion that she had felt in a _very_ long time.

Oneakka had told her she had been caged in all her life. He was right.

She had renamed herself Seeal, meaning 'Free One' in Glisi, but she wasn't free, not really.

What had happened to her as a child had stayed with her, breeding anger, hurt, and fear. Whereas Ulfur had shown his pain and had lost himself in it, she had suppressed hers. She had become as cold as the world she had escaped, but she hadn't been able to escape what she had carried with her from there. The anger at life, at Father's murder, and at the sneaky terrible fear that lingered unnamed in her heart – that perhaps her people had been right, that maybe she was cursed.

And was a curse upon others.

She slid to a sudden stop in the snow, breathing fast, her tears freezing on her cheeks. She turned and looked back to the far left.

He had stood in front of her, a criminal. He had stood between her and her angry gigantic brother.

Stupidly heroic and insightful lump of a warrior.

And so painfully honourable.

A scarred, intimidating man who she should hate, who would put her in a cell for the rest of her life.

She had done nothing honourable in her life. Ever. She ran from it, as she was doing now.

"What are you doing?!" Robiah called, hurrying back to her. "Seeal, I'm getting to that Portal with you or without you. They have to be warned."

Except it was likely that those from Atlantis would be far too late now. The Elite were either dead or being tortured at this very moment.

Something else had to happen to create more time.

"Warn them," she stated as she turned to Robiah, sudden purpose so clear to her now that it was like a rush of heat through her middle. "What other weapons do you have?" She demanded. She only had Oneakka's gun. Robiah had two, his own and the one he had taken off the Division solider, but he likely had been armed with more when they had travelled here.

"What? Why? Do you see something?" Robiah asked looking off past her worriedly.

"No, I'm going back," she told him. "Give me one of your guns."

"What?!" Robiah asked her like she was stupid, which she imagined she was right now. "Are you crazy?"

"I can buy them more time, make some noise, and draw back-up to us more quickly."

"You'll be killed," Robiah told her sternly. "Seeal, I don't care about keeping you prisoner right now. For all I care, you can go through the Portal by yourself, I won't stop you."

She glared at him. "This isn't about escaping. I'm going back to help." The idea sounded crazy to her own ears.

"You're not going back there."

"I am, and we're wasting time arguing about it."

"I won't let you go and sacrifice yourself," Robiah told her. The turn of phrase struck her considering her previous thoughts of Father and the Elite's sacrifices.

"Because I'm more valuable out there as a source for you?" She asked Robiah angrily. "This isn't about sources, contacts, or stupid criminal acts. This is about saving their lives if I can and you're getting in my way."

Robiah frowned at her and then shook his head. "This is stupid," he muttered, but he handed her his spare gun.

"What else do you have?" She asked.

He used his free hand to pat the front of his Elite given coat. Her own coat had been stripped clear of anything that the Elite had thought she might use against them. Robiah pulled open two flaps revealing a small grenade, a knife, and something that looked like a broach. She tugged them all free, and as she did she realised the broach was warm against her hand.

"I took it off Mathai," Robiah said with an edge of sadness in his voice, and she realised he must be referring to the last Division man that had fallen. "It's one of the Elite Wraith stunner defusers."

Pleased at the discovery, she clipped the broach on her waistband under her coat, aware of a brief buzzing sensation passing over her. The added protection upped her chances of survival considerably, not that she had any idea yet what she was going to do. She slid the sheathed knife into the back of her waistband and hefted both her guns.

"Get to the Portal, warn them and lead them to us," she told Robiah before she turned back towards the left where a Queen and her drones were waiting for her.

"If they're even still there," she heard Robiah shout, but she was already running full pelt away from him.

Well, she would find out soon enough, but one thing was for sure – she wasn't going to run away anymore.

She was going to face the dangers head on, and, for once in her life, she would be the one to throw herself into danger. She would rather not sacrifice herself, but if she was going to die today, then at least she would meet her end defiantly. She wasn't going to run this time.

She would stand between the onslaught and the heroes, and do at least one honourable thing before she died.

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The call took longer to come in than John had expected. They had been hanging around waiting near the Control Room, three teams all dressed in full weather gear, masks, hats and gloves in hand. All cautiously expectant and trying not to show how hot they were all getting in their winter outfits.

Teyla, Nalla and Isen had stood at the bottom of the main staircase, the embodiment of calm and patience, though Madesh had been shifting more nervously next to them.

When the Gate finally activated, twenty faces turned to it. John slid past Ford as the wormhole burst out of the Gate, to watch Colonel Carter looking over Chuck's shoulder up in the Control Room.

"Receiving a signal," Chuck announced, "It's encoded."

"We are receiving you, Si," Teyla called out from below, her radio earpiece presumably decoding the transmission immediately. John moved around several Marines so he could look down at her. She nodded to the voice in her ear, her 'in control' game face in place. She looked up towards Colonel Carter. "We are being called in," she called. "We are on our way, Si."

The Gate shut down.

"Dial up the Glisi world," Carter ordered loudly. "Ready the MALP," she called down over the railing.

John and the Marines all shifted forward, moving down the steps as across the Gate Room floor the technicians were steering the MALP into place. The Gate began to activate, its lights spinning, swiftly followed by the rush of the wormhole establishing itself.

The MALP rolled forward towards the event horizon, the small Elite device on top glowing as it activated. John watched the force-field cover the MALP as it rolled annoyingly slowly towards the Gate.

Managing to slide through Marines as they all headed towards the Gate, John made his way to the front, taking up a position just behind Teyla's shoulder, Ford at his side. She wore a thick dark coat, its collar high around her neck, with a hood section clipped onto her hair, leaving her face clear. She was fully armed with Elite weapons, which Carter had allowed Si to send through for the three Elite going to the Glisi world.

The MALP slowly slid through the wormhole and everyone waited.

"Receiving telemetry," Chuck announced, louder than normal since he knew he had a large audience today. "There's a lot of static. Whoa!" He shouted in surprise.

"We've got four Wraith by the DHD," Carter announced.

"In which direction?" Teyla called as she and Nalla moved forward, pulling out their super Elite guns, lifting them up towards the Gate.

"Two degrees left of centre," Carter called back.

Teyla and Nalla fired a series of blasts of the powerful energy weapons through the Gate, sending a sweeping wave of blaster fire at the Wraith on the other side.

"All down but one down," Chuck replied. "He's at one o'clock," he added.

The Elite wouldn't know what that meant, but fortunately one of the technicians down the front of the room was awake and gestured the directions for the Elite. More blasts went through.

"They're down. Flash bangs," Carter ordered.

Two Marines headed toward the Gate and flung the two canisters through.

"Go, go, go," Carter shouted a second later.

They all pushed forward, the Elite heading through first, weapons up.

John held his P90 up and tight against his shoulder as he kept close behind Teyla, predicting they would come through just right of the MALP.

The watery surface of the wormhole slid over him and he stepped out into freezing cold and smoky air. Blasts of fire echoed around him, and he heard someone groan as they fell to his left.

"Blanketing fire," John ordered, sweeping his P90 forward, sending steady sweeps of fire past Teyla's shoulder.

A blast of Wraith stunner fire struck Ford next to John and he managed to catch the kid's arm to assist him more gently to the ground as he continued to fire. The Marines encircled forward, the smoke beginning to clear, and John saw the flash of an Elite blade and heard the screaming hiss of a Wraith. The air closer to him pounded with repeated bursts of P90 fire.

Keeping his head down, dragging Ford with him to the right out of the line of fire, John finally got a good view of the space around them. There had to be twenty Wraith on the ground and the same amount surrounding them. Stunner fire flared out through the darkness that was lit by a strange glow from the snow as well as from the Gate.

A Wraith snarled forward and John dropped onto one knee next to Ford as he fired into the chest of the oncoming creature. It staggered and dropped to the ground, twitching as it died, but another was behind it, lips dripping with saliva and its feeding hand up as it hissed. John pressed the trigger, but the Wraith darted aside. More fire joined from behind John, catching the Wraith in the crossfire and it dropped bleeding to the snow.

Breathing fast with adrenaline and against the overwhelming cold, John held his P90 high as he turned on his knee, sweeping the right side of the Gate, but there were no more Wraith incoming. Dark trees stretched out in all directions, snow piled up between them, glowing strangely across icicles and fallen branches. It looked like the epitome of an evil scary forest out of an animated movie.

The P90 fire died away behind him, reports coming in over his static-filled earpiece and through the air behind him. Six were down and Carter was already sending another team with some medics.

John rose up from the ground, keeping his weapon facing the right, and looked over his shoulder to where he had last seen the three Elite.

Teyla stood unharmed, one sword out and a gun in her other hand, Wraith at her feet. Nalla stood beside her, a gun in her hand and a pad in the other.

"Si reports they went this way," Nalla stated, pointing off to the two o'clock position from the Gate. There was a rough series of footprints visible enough in the snow, so it looked like it wouldn't be too difficult to follow the previous team the Elite had sent through the evil scary forest.

Teyla looked up sharply to the trees overhead. "There is a Hive in orbit," she announced.

John glanced up as if that would help. "They must have a hole in the canopy to send in the ground troops," he considered, but doing a quick three sixty, as the new team stepped through the Gate, he couldn't see any obvious space in the trees.

"Or they came through the Portal as we did," Nalla suggested as she strode away, moving around the dead Wraith quickly as she headed in the direction she had pointed. "We must move ahead swiftly."

John nodded, gesturing the teams forward, orders given and everyone alert. The medical team had arrived, ready to redial and get the stunned back to the city. John ordered three Marines to stay with them long enough to see them all through, and then he hurried ahead, sliding through the nervous, swiftly moving group, Nalla and Teyla at the lead. As he moved through the team, he checked his watch. The call had come in all of five minutes ago, the previous call a good forty minutes before that, and the Daedalus wasn't estimated to arrive above the planet for another ten minutes. Time was not on their side to reach the first Elite team in time to help.

John strained his hearing, but heard nothing to imply a battle anywhere close by; there was no gunfire, no smell of burning. It was possible that the Wraith had only just arrived and hadn't yet engaged with the other team, but considering Nalla's repeated calls into her Elite radio without answer, it wasn't looking good.

His eyes slid to Teyla's back just ahead of him, and saw the strain across her shoulders as she broke into a fast run.

Her colleagues, her friends were here, and it was possible they were all going to be too late to save the day.

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TBC


	18. Rage and Pain

**Chapter 18 – Rage and Pain**

"This is crazy. This is just completely crazy," Seeal repeated under her breath as she ran across the snow, ducking under low hanging branches and weaving between the trees, the snowlight easily lighting her way. "I'm totally insane."

The forest was silent around her except for the soft rapid crunching of icy snow under her fast moving boots. Her breathing sounded excessively loud to her ears, her throat and lungs aching with the cold and her haste to make up the distance back towards the Wraith. She had a good sense of direction and so was pretty sure she was crossing back towards the direction they had originally approached the pond and base. That way she could sweep out and round, hoping to gauge a clear view of what was currently happening at the Wraith base, and maybe find some way to make a difference.

"This is totally insane," she panted out again. It was fast becoming something of a mantra seeing her through the long run, as if the lunacy of her actions somehow helped her to forge onwards. On towards Ancestors knew how many Wraith, armed with explosives, guns, life sucking abilities, oh yes and a Queen!

She was totally insane to be running towards that nightmare. Of her own free will.

"This being brave and heroic is bloody stupid," she puffed out as she crossed round behind to two deep dunes of snow built up against some closely growing trees.

She could still remember the lessons her father had taught her about the three types of trees that grew in the forests here, that one attached itself to others under the ground, breaking up from under the earth to reach up into the other tree's light. Those closer growing trees made the best hiding spots when hunting, and though she wasn't hunting, she needed all the concealment she could get right now.

The guns in her hands were growing noticeably colder as the light level lowered, but she trusted that Elite weapons wouldn't ice up inside. The knife against her back was a shiver of cold through her clothing though, reminding her of the minute amount of weaponry she was armed with against the Wraith terror ahead of her.

Ahead the trees were parting slightly and she immediately spotted the uneven lie of the snow. Slowing to a jog, sweeping her gaze constantly around to look for monsters about to descend upon her, she headed towards the uneven element. The surface of the snow had been broken and scattered with a vast number of boot prints. She stopped at the side of the tracks slicing through the pure lying snow. It was the route they had used from the Portal, she was certain. She remembered the shape of the dunes and the predominance of the wider darker tree species.

High above her a low call snapped her attention upwards, her heart jumping and pounding even faster. A ruffle and shaking of frost revealed only the dark shape of two ravens sitting high up in the branches, their bodies fluffed up against the cold which was noticeably growing sharper against her face. In another hour, nothing could survive outside without being covered. Even the ravens sheltered into hollows in the trees at night. The ease of these two ravens, perched up high, fluffed and angling their dark heads to study her, assured her that there were no Wraith currently moving through the trees up there. Every living thing feared the Wraith. When they culled, every creature fled for their lives. Though, she had heard there were some creatures that were immune to the Wraith's feeding, there was even the legendary lizards on one of the Athosian worlds that actually hunted Wraith when they culled.

Seeal turned in a careful circle, sweeping her gaze up and further out through the trees, seeking out any unusual shapes that could be sleeping Wraith, but nothing seemed to be moving. Which in itself was odd, but her home world had always been a strange place. She hadn't really noticed that as a child until she had been much older and had visited many other planets. The forest here was shockingly devoid of life, yet, looking at it now, there was something darkly beautiful about the purity of just snow, dark-barked trees, and only the ravens living above.

Except there were Wraith out in the forest too now. Happy none were about to leap from the high canopy, Seeal lowered her attention to the tracks through the snow. They were not just from her group's passing. Moving across to study the prints closer, her heart rose at the hope that perhaps the back-up soldiers from Atlantis might already have passed by, but immediately she saw the prints around the Elite and Division standard issue boots were clearly Wraith. The prints were large, uniform, and heavily pressed. They had followed them towards the base. Well, at least it provided an easy route to follow back to the battle site.

She set off at a fast run again, keeping to a parallel path to the prints, while keeping low and praying that perhaps the Elite had woken up and had already killed all the Wraith.

The sudden scream echoing through the forest ruined that hope in seconds.

She slid to a stop at the sound, panic struggling to break out of her tight control. The sound was disgustingly familiar to all who lived in this galaxy – the sound of someone's life being drained painfully, fatally, and terrifyingly from them. It had a raging high pitch that was part scream part cry that echoed memories back to her along with the instinctive reaction inside to abandon her mission and just turn and run for freedom.

But, she couldn't. Instead, she focused on the sound with sharp seeking focus. It was a male voice for sure.

She was almost certain it wasn't Oneakka. His voice was deeper, and she liked to think that even at his end that he would not scream with such terror, that he would be raging at his end.

That gave her a burst of hope even through the terror and the adrenaline had her racing on with more purpose. A male voice, not Elite, and not Ulfur's, meant it had to be one of the Division men. The Queen would feed on them first wouldn't she? She would leave the Elite till last?

The scream died away sharply, the man's last breath almost audible as the sound abruptly stopped, leaving the eerie silence of the forest in its place.

The scream, as horrific as it had been, had helped though, for it had helped her triangulate her position, and it had also confirmed that the Wraith were still here.

Another scream hit the air, a different male, but still not Oneakka.

Seeal raced on faster, the scream growing noticeably louder, driving her towards the source, drawing her towards what had to be the stupidest choice she had ever made. But, she was almost there now, and she was determined. She would see this through, would help the Elite. Maybe even gain some satisfaction from saving her brother too, if he wasn't already dead.

She shoved away that thought, which was surprisingly emotional, as the latest scream died away quickly.

A sudden shout of anger followed it though, another voice, but this time female – Kari.

Seeal was almost there, the sound so much clearer and echoing from directly ahead.

The thick snow banks suddenly appeared between the trees up ahead, the largest banks which the Elite group had climbed over just before they had reached the pond and the base beyond. However, they were not the most obvious sign that she had reached her goal. Dead Wraith were scattered across the snow.

She slid to a stop, Kari' angry shouts dropping away.

Her breathing loud and shallow, Seeal ran her eyes over the littered Wraith bodies, nervously looking for any that might be moving and about to leap at her. She swept her gaze up as well, checking the trees. There were burn marks spread out across the branches, all from the Elite weapons fire, and one tree was still smouldering. The smell of burning timber hung heavily here, the distinctive scent of these trees strong from her childhood. It brought forward too many memories, all of which she pushed aside as she began to creep her way through the bodies.

A few had been shot, but most appeared to have been taken down in one sweep. They were laid out on their fronts, their faces literally pressed down into the snow as if they had all been knocked down from behind into a flat carpet of Wraith. As she passed one, she took a moment to cautiously nudge it over. Its expression was locked in the twisted moment of death. They were all dead. That was worrying as much as it was a relief. What if whatever killed them was used again? Had it been the strange light that had knocked out the Elite?

There was no use worrying about it now, so Seeal picked her way through them at a faster pace, feeling more confident that they were not about to come alive and attack her.

Kari began shouting again in the distance as Seeal neared the large snow bank. When they had climbed over the bank earlier, she had thought it suspiciously well constructed by the wind and snow, and Oneakka had clearly thought the same, for he had brushed away the outer layer of ice with his boot to reveal its many layers. She wondered if the Wraith had constructed it. With the deep cold here, it wouldn't take long to build up such a large bank. It was useless speculating, but it helped distract her somewhat from the field of dead Wraith around her and Kari' continuing shouted words in the far distance. As she reached the snow bank, Seeal ducked down low and paused, concentrating on Kari' words a little more closely. Except she couldn't make out any specific words from this distance, if there were any, for it was almost as if Kari were just raging verbally as if she were wrestling something. Would the Wraith pit the Elite in hand-to-hand combat with their best warriors, as the stories said they did with Runners?

Moving millimetre by millimetre, Seeal slowly and carefully looked up over the bank.

The space between the snow bank and the familiar area by the end of the pond was again littered with dead Wraith. Here the deaths were due more to the former battle that had raged here, blood staining the snow in dark splattered patches, but there were still the flatly knocked over Wraith lying across the ground. There was no movement at all– nothing still lived here - except there was movement off in the distance. Seeal shifted to her right some more until she could see further ahead alongside the frozen pond.

There was a reasonably open space between the trees up to the right of the pond, which from the smouldering trunks and pushed aside fallen branches, looked like it had been formed by one or more of the former explosions. The smell of burning and blood drifted strongly in the cold air towards her as she studied the open space.

She was too far away to make out much detail yet, but it was clear that the open space was filled with Wraith.

Holding tightly to her weapons, she moved further to her right, keeping low behind the bank, crossing the short breaks between trees until she could dart forward to another snow bank closer to her targets.

Tall, heavy set Wraith drones stood in two lines forming a semicircle, like a wall, with their backs towards her. They were all focused forward, and from beyond them Seeal heard Kari shout again, the sound a struggle of pain and anger.

With all the Wraith apparently facing one way, Seeal had the chance to move forward unseen, though she kept glancing upwards to ensure no Wraith were working as sentries up in the trees. The way clear, she moved forward, moving from tree to tree, snow bank to snow dune, making her way carefully out to the right and forward, seeking an improved view of what was on the other side of the wall of Wraith muscle.

As she risked crossing a larger distance between a dune and a nice thick tree, she saw one Wraith look round. Throwing herself into the snow at the foot of her target tree, she scrabbled quickly up behind it, pressing her back against the trunk as she worked to control her breathing.

Oddly, she few more in control now that she was here, that her targets and mission were upon her. Running from the Wraith, the vast number of them loud and frightening in the forest had been a first for her, but this sneaking up on a smaller number of targets was more familiar territory. Of course she had never snuck up on Wraith before – what sane person would?

She waited several beats, listening intently for the approach of Wraith boots through the snow, and wishing away the angry painful sounds that Kari was making.

But no Wraith sounded like they were coming her way, so she risked leaning slightly to her left to peer around the side of the tree.

The Wraith hadn't moved, but the one at the end who had looked round had shifted his stance slightly, which allowed a sliver of a view past the wall of drones.

At the centre of their semicircle, Seeal could see shrivelled human bodies wrapped in the Division's uniforms, their coats piled up to the side in the snow. The Wraith had stripped them all of their protective coats. Left out in this growing cold, they would die within the hour without the protection, but she suspected that would be more time than the Wraith would give them.

She peered out further from the tree, trying to see more. Movement and a blaze of red hair crossed the limited view, and suddenly Kari was revealed, sat in a chair on the snow. Her arms were restrained behind her, her head held back as if in pain, her shoulders lifted and tight. Her coat missing, her Elite uniform looked like it was frosting up already, and it wasn't a uniform best for the cold anyway, what with its two holes cut over her shoulders to show her Elite Wraith tattoos. Seeal imagined that she was freezing, but then, she looked like she had more important worries foremost in her mind. And Seeal couldn't help her right now, not from this angle.

Seeal looked away, scanning the trees around her for Wraith and also for the best hiding places ahead. She couldn't risk running now she was so much closer, so she crawled her way carefully to the next tree along, wishing her breathing was quieter. The snow was freezing under her bare hands, but she didn't risk digging out the Elite given gloves that had been supplied with her coat. She didn't want to risk her dexterity at a vital moment.

Several more trees along, Kari' angry shouts had become loud verbal insults thrown at the Queen, though she still sounded in pain. Seeal pressed her back to a tree and peered round again.

The first thing she saw was Ulfur. With surprising relief, she saw that he was alive, for now. He was knelt in the snow, his arms pulled back behind him, secured over a branch with his wrists tied tightly together with what looked like a mixture of chains and Wraith sinew. He too had had his big coat removed, and was knelt with his head hung forward, blood across his shoulders and dripping from his chin. Beyond him, she now had an improved view of Kari' chair, but could also see another chair set beside hers, in which was slumped the tall Elite. He was clearly completely unconscious, blood trailing down the front of his face, neck, and shirt. His arms were tied back behind his chair, and there were thick straps of the Wraith fibrous material holding him to the chair, which also appeared to be the only support that kept him upright. He looked as if he would topple from his seat into the snow at any moment.

That made two Elite - where was Oneakka?

She leant out further from behind the tree, straining to see if there was another chair to the far left.

There were too many Wraith in the way though, so she crawled carefully on to the next tree, setting her hands and knees carefully. She was a good hundred yards out into the trees from the Wraith, but they had good hearing. She kept her eyes on them as she moved, ready at any moment to drop flat onto the snow if one even so much as sneezed.

Did Wraith sneeze?

She shook her head at herself as she reached a thick trunk set in the middle of a deep snow dune. Her breaths were forming large clouds in front of her in the freezing air, and she swore tiny snowflakes fell from the mist. Her view was much improved from here, and her eyes immediately focused on the now visible third chair, set furthest away. Oneakka sat slumped in the seat, his large muscular weight keeping him upright within the thick restraining straps. His jacket gone, his armour beneath looked frosted, and his large arms were bare to the cold. He was clearly alive though.

Seeal scanned the rest of the space around him, quickly assessing the situation.

The drones formed a thick semicircular wall around the scene, like a protection detail for their Queen who stood between them and the Elite, the dead lying out behind her, Ulfur knelt to the far right of the wall of drones. The Queen's red hair seemed shockingly bright compared to the snow and the muted colours of everyone else. Her skin was almost as white as the snow though, as was her long dress, restrained with a wide silver belt at her waist. A black tattoo spread like leaves across the side of her jaw and cheek as she looked down at Kari. She was talking to Kari, not feeding on her, but there was still a predatory quality to the way the Queen stood over her. Presumably the battle was raging inside Kari' head now, the Queen inside her mind and torturing her from there.

Kari threw her head back, as if she had been physically punched by the Queen, and let out a loud guttural cry. It pulled at Seeal's nerves to hear it, but she focused on what she needed to do now.

She couldn't attack from here. If she threw in the grenade it would likely hit the Elite and Ulfur as much as the Wraith, and she couldn't jump out firing either, because the Wraith were still mostly between her and the Elite.

The Queen was the important target to remove. Take her out and the drones would likely be thrown, even if for only a second, but it would be something.

Seeal pulled back behind her tree and dune. She needed to get further round to the right, attack from the far right, cutting in between the Elite and the wall of drones. If she could take out the Queen with her first shots...but she had heard that Queens in particular took a lot of fire to take down. She would need to go for a kill shot. Would a blaster from a distance, even with Oneakka's powerful weapon, kill a Queen? It probably would, but if Seeal didn't make the shots count, the Queen would have three handy Elite to hide behind and drain of life to heal herself. No, Seeal had to take her out decisively, which meant from close range, then get between the Elite and the rest of the Wraith, throw the single grenade she had at them, and then hold them back.

"Sure, because that'll all be easy," she muttered under her breath as she checked her guns, brushing ice off them.

Kari' cries rose in pitch.

Seeal was out of time. She would have to run out away into the trees and only then make her way round to the far right, otherwise she would risk the Wraith spotting her moving through the forest. She had to get moving, because it would take time to get round and into place without being seen by the drones.

She launched herself forward, her back to the Wraith, which felt wrong given the situation, but it was the only way to get to the angle she needed. This might be a suicidal plan, but she wasn't about to waste what little chance she had. She had one shot at this and she had to have the best strategic line of sight from which to launch her attack.

Behind her, as she tore through the trees, Kari' cries turned into a scream, tearing through the cold air and rising up into the highest of pitches.

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He rose from darkness and flashes of light into sharp cold against his skin and a throbbing pain in his ear. Confusion was a thick cloud over him, against which he struggled for comprehension and sense.

The memories focused together in a sudden rush, slamming alarm through him and jolting Oneakka abruptly awake.

He immediately became aware that his arms were pulled back painfully behind him, his shoulders straining at the angle and his wrists rubbing against tight restraints. Thick straps were an extra compression around him, holding him against the back of a chair.

Oneakka blinked rapidly as he forced his head upright, a blurry film beginning to clear from his eyes, as he strained against the straps around him, flexing his arms to break free. But, it was a stretchy fibrous material that refused to give, which was disturbingly familiar.

As his eyes began to clear, he looked up to see an encircling wall of Wraith drones a few metres away, forming a solid barrier between him and the dark cold trees of the Glisi forest beyond. Snowflakes were lazily drifting down through the space between him and the drones, falling down to the snow that was scattered with bodies.

Oneakka paused in his wrestling attempts to break free as he processed what he was seeing through his still slow running mind. The Division squad were laid out across the icy ground - all fed upon. Ulfur was knelt on the ground beside them, his arms restrained back and his face bloody.

To Oneakka's left, Halling was restrained in a chair of his own, but he was completely out of it, blood dribbling down his face.

And on the ground between them, at the foot of an empty chair, Kari lay in the snow.

Blood was visible across her shrivelled aged face, her eyes cloudy and open, empty and dead.

Oneakka roared in anger, struggling against his restraints again, raging against the chains around his wrists. But, a strange weakness was flowing through him, overwhelming his attempts to snap his restrains and tiring him quickly. He felt as if the blood was draining from his limbs and he felt a surge of nausea.

Abruptly exhausted, he rested back in his chair, panting with exertion, his eyes still on Kari.

"Have you finished your tantrum yet"? A slurred female voice purred.

He forced his heavy head up and round to focus on the face stepping into view.

A Queen.

She slid forward towards him, her red hair lying brightly around her shoulders. It identified her as one of the lesser Queen lines, one he had thought died out.

Thin red lips parted around sharp pointed teeth set in thick translucent Wraith gums. Drool dribbled down from her wet lips as she laughed deeply.

He tried to break free again, but the attempt didn't even get from his brain to his body this time, but he understood why now - the Queen was mentally shutting down his control of his body. Unable to do anything else, he could at least snarl up at her.

She grinned wider, if you could ever describe the Wraith as a smiling.

"I recognise this one," she said, one long talon reaching out towards him. He commanded his head to smack his forehead against the pale hand, but of course nothing happened.

Her talon touched against his right temple and stroked a small line down to his cheekbone.

"This marking, this Queen you murdered, was one of my blood sisters," the Queen hissed, her red hair falling like blood around her pale face.

He tried to spit some comment back at that, but she had too tight a hold on him now, he couldn't even speak.

She chuckled deep and low as she pulled back her hand, turning it so he could see the blood on the feeding bite at the centre of her palm. Kari' blood.

He managed to clench his teeth as he tried to fight against the Queen's overwhelming mind. Her genetic line had always been the strongest at mental control, which was one reason why they had been decisively targeted in the past by the Elite and the Military. He should have guessed it would be one of her line behind the new Quantum.

"Humans, so easy to control, so easy to manipulate," the Queen purred. "It took so little to bring you here."

He snapped his eyes up to hers, focusing away from his inner battle and onto what she was saying.

She grinned that drooling smile again. "Yes, so easy to draw you here for my needs," she purred.

She turned away, her long white dress swirling around her as she moved aside, and a man stepped into view behind her, tall and worryingly familiar.

Khor.

"What?" Ulfur muttered from the left, his words slow as if drunk. "What's going on Khor? You know I can be trusted."

Khor turned towards the knelt Glisi, which put him only a foot or so taller than Ulfur. "Let me feed on this one myself, my Queen," he asked.

Feed?

The Queen chuckled deeply as Ulfur's eyes widened. "I don't..." he uttered.

"Idiot creature," Khor muttered as he reached back and slapped an open palm across Ulfur's cheek, leaving a streak of paint across Ulfur's bloodstained face. "You will die here on your world, and then my Queen will feast on the rest of your people." Ulfur frowned with horrified comprehension as Khor tore away cosmetic coverings from the middle of his palms, revealing the feeding hands of a Wraith beneath.

Oneakka ground his teeth together, angry that he had missed the obvious signs about Khor. He had been too focused on the Quantum, on tracing the way here.

"What? Why?" Ulfur asked through slurred shocked words. They were good questions though.

The Queen turned from Khor back to Oneakka and bared her teeth again. "Why?" She asked softly. "I needed someone to present my invitation."

Haven?

"Yesss," she purred, saliva dripping down her chin. "Just enough of a change to the drug to persuade you to come here."

Oneakka frowned.

She laughed low and deep as she held out one large pale hand. A Wraith drone stepped forward and placed a large full syringe in her hand.

"Your kind attempted to wipe out my blood sisters," she uttered, her smile falling from her red lips. "To destroy our gift of the mind, but I will not let that happen. I will become the most powerful Queen this galaxy has ever seen, taking all the minds I wish, and none of your kind will ever be able to stop me."

She advanced towards Oneakka, her claws tapping against the syringe as she turned it in her hands.

Haven had just been a set up to trick the Elite into coming here?

She chuckled deeply as she shook her head, apparently having heard his thoughts. "It was so much more than that, for if I can expand my skills a hundred-fold then no human, no other Wraith, will ever kill off my lineage." The other Wraith had tried to kill off her line too?

"And I have so many other tools to use to that end. Did you enjoy my latest experiment?" She asked, gesturing to the right, where Oneakka could just about see sitting on the snow the new spherical Wraith tech that had knocked him and Kari out. "I like to invent, to discover new ways to enforce my will, and this one certainly overwhelmed your previous protective measures."

The Queen had found a way to stun without using their usual stunners.

"Yesss," she purred as she reached his chair, towering over him, the syringe held like a dagger in her hand. "Though," she added, "the device had a less than favourable affect on non-humans, but I can make plenty more to serve me."

Oneakka frowned. The coloured light had killed Wraith?

"But this," she continued, holding up the syringe almost lovingly. "This is my most special creation. This distilled from your Quantum, works for me and me alone. And it does, I assure you," she whispered, moving right up close to him, her alien smell an assault on his nose, "do what I promised the other Quantum would. This will allow me to rip apart your mind, to steal _everything_ I want, and leave you empty and weak at my feet with nothing more to offer than a light meal. As was your friend."

Anger, hot and boiling raged up through Oneakka again. To think he had been asleep, strapped to a chair while Kari had fought for her life to have it stolen from her by this disgusting creature. He struggled against his restraints again hoping the Queen's attention had lessened, but he felt it snap back over his body, clamping down even tighter than before.

She leant forward and the syringe rose. Oneakka willed his body to move with all his might, but he felt the sharp penetration of the needle into the base of his throat, followed by the pressure of fluid being forced into his body.

She pulled the needle out of him with a hiss of Wraith pleasure.

"I have tested it on many humans, as you saw, but you three are my first Elite. I have been waiting for this for some time," she smiled, her chin jutting forward, her gums and teeth protruding. Her tongue swept out across them as Oneakka continued to unsuccessfully will his body back under his command.

Only then something changed.

He felt the rush of something artificial swamping through his system.

The drug was taking affect.

He felt it like a surging push, rising up his body, seeming to draw all his senses and sensations with it. He gasped at the overwhelming rush, which felt like a full body caress inside and out. So this was what Quantum felt like, or at least this version of it.

The Queen grinned, the sight of her swirling in his vision, so he clamped his eyes tightly shut as if it would help counteract the sensations surging through him.

He felt like his skin was breaking open, as if his soul was separating from his body, rising up and breaking apart, and his awareness of the chair and the cold around him all slid away. He struggled against it, tried to will everything back together, back under his control, but it rushed on, drawing him away to some strange alien place. Without anchor or sense of direction, he felt as if he was drifting through soft emptiness, lost and ungrounded.

Only suddenly the Queen's mind was there as well, like a sharp knife cutting through all the softness, tearing and hurting him.

He cried out at it, hearing his own pain-filled voice echo from some distant place.

"Good," he heard her cruel voice vibrate through his being. "Now show me _everything_."

He couldn't stop his mind from doing as she commanded. Memories and remembered sensations all rushed through his consciousness as if his mind was a book that she was quickly flicking through.

"Show me," she whispered and it cut like glass through him, so different and painful to the former pleasurable expansion that he had felt at first. He heard himself cry out again, the sound distant and almost unfamiliar in this place.

But it triggered something, a memory of a time he had heard his voice return to him like it was from someone else. Someone who had been raging and dying.

His vision suddenly filled with the remembered flames, the Hive base burning around him, the smell of the webs shrivelling in the heat, and the Queen slashing at him.

"Sister," the observing voice hissed softly.

He remembered the horrific pain as that other Queen had sliced through the right side of his face, and just the old echo of it was enough to steal his breath and shock his nerves. The remembered moment continued playing though, in sharp clarity as if he were back in that tight burning Wraith hallway, the walls on fire and the tainted Queen's blade eating into his face. He could feel the remembered sensation of his hands against his face, and the nauseous moment of feeling the bone of his own skull against his fingertips through the open wound.

And that Queen's rage, the trails of her dress alight as her Hive burned, her clawing hands reaching for him, the sharp teeth of her feeding hand grazing against his throat. He had fallen back away from her, the floor hot and melting under him, the smell of his own flesh burning in his nose.

"Nooo," a whisper growled, and he felt a burst of victorious satisfaction at hearing the Queen's horror at his recalled final battle with that other Queen.

So, he kept the memory going, surrendering to it and let the pain in. He recalled the vivid detail of the stickiness of Wraith blood on his arms, and the empty hollow place inside him in which he had been ready to die, but not before he had killed them all. Till he had destroyed all the Queen had built on the bones of his people.

He remembered the shocking crunch of the Queen's forehead against his sharpened boot as he had kicked up at her, her clothing swirling around his legs, its flames threatening to catch onto him. He had kicked again, swinging up and round, but had been unable to judge the distance correctly with one eye partly closed, the swelling and burning cut flesh threatening it.

He had missed her and he remembered the terrifying horror following that missed strike, seeming so youthful and inexperienced to him now. He had had no faith in his skills then, had had no hard worn experienced steady strikes to use in the face of overwhelming emotion and terror. He had only flailed wildly up at her, but it had been able to force her to draw back a moment, her skin burning, and it had allowed him to swing up and sink his last remaining knife up, right up under her chin, feeling it break up and through into her brain.

Painful fury hit him in the present, the current Queen's rage at the relived memory as sharp and intense as the remembered raw open wound of his face. He didn't run from it though, he gathered and huddled further around that memory, feeling the loosening of her grip on his mind as he weathered the raging anger and pain throughout his body. He had lived through pain unimaginable and she was not good enough to beat that.

She screamed in his head, threatening thoughts he couldn't process but felt them there, perhaps heard her shouting them beyond the expanded moment he was in.

He focused though around the pain, reaching down into himself, using every fibre of defiance he had ever felt to rage back at her. Throwing his own fury, his own screams of loss, of pain and anger in the face of his death.

He would die, but he would never surrender to her. No Wraith would ever win over him, even if they cut him down, he would take them all with him, or at least the knowledge she wanted from him. He would deny her everything, and so he screamed back at her, feeling her breath hot on his physical face.

He managed to force his eyes open through that battle of wills, almost surprised not to find himself back in the burning Hive base from so long ago. Instead he saw the red-haired Queen, mouth wide and fangs dripping, her hand pulled back ready to drain the life out of him.

But there was an abrupt blur of motion and her head snapped sideways.

A knife, bright and stained with her leaking blood, protruded from the side of her temple.

He saw the Queen's look of shocked fury before her mind snapped out from his, leaving him floating and uncentered in the swamp of her drug.

There was burst of gun fire from somewhere and he heard Wraith hissing in fury. Just ahead, beyond where the Queen was falling, Oneakka saw Ulfur surge up and plough into Khor, ramming him down into the snow in a tumble of limbs.

Dazed but determined to seize the moment, Oneakka struggled against his restraints, rocking his chair as best he could in his hazed unfocused state, and the world toppled sideways.

He felt the moment of falling like an age passing, through which he saw shadows and Wraith sliding past, blazing streaks of energy weapons and then a blossom of fire exploding up and out, cutting them down. Heated air swept over him from the explosion as he finally hit the snow. His arm and leg, pinned by the chair, woke somewhat from their drugged numbness by the impact.

Movement close to him sounded loud and important, but he was aware he was fast losing his battle to stay conscious, the drug's haze sliding into his brain like cold fingers threatening to smother him.

But, he forced himself to look up, craning back his neck to look up as a shadow passed over him. Stepping in front of him, her black hair merging with the black canopy overhead, Seeal appeared.

He watched her firing, a warrior raven standing over him.

But his body finally lost its battle against the flow of pain and his over-sensitised attacked senses, and once again he felt the wash of blackness claiming him, the cold talons pulling him from the world.

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TBC


	19. Freedom

**Note****:** Thank you guys for the lovely reviews. To those who review as guests and to whom I can't reply to directly, many thanks. I appreciate every single review, thank you so much. And so, here we finally reach the end of the battle waging on the Glisi world. I hope you enjoy...

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**Chapter 19 - Freedom**

At a good distance from the Wraith, running parallel now to where Seeal estimated they were, she was making good time. The distance from the pond allowed her to run more heavily through the snow, the warmth under her coat almost boiling her alive against the freezing air against her hands and face.

She slid to a stop, panting cold clouds in front of her, and checked her position through the trees. It was difficult to judge distances in this forest – there were no clear lines to follow, no obvious paths through the uneven snow, and no horizon by which to navigate through the randomly spread dark trees. She studied her own tracks through the snow behind her, projected it further back and out to where she had left the clearing by the pond.

The distance she had traversed seemed right, the angle right, so she risked heading back towards her target.

She moved as swiftly and lightly as she could through the trees, her anxiety creeping up again, for she was once again running _towards_ Wraith. It was possible there were Wraith sensors buried in the snow, perhaps the reason why the Wraith had known of their arrival, but she couldn't risk creeping silently along. She was on the clock and once she drew closer to the pond, she would have to slow her pace to avoid being heard approaching. She would need to slow to a fast walk, then crawl forward as she had before – work her way carefully, making sure she wouldn't tip off the Wraith of her approaching attack until she delivered it. She would have to be very careful. She was one woman alone, and it seemed, from the silence of the forest, that the back-up from Atlantis was not about to suddenly appear and get her out of this madness. So, it would be up to her, cursed child of this planet, to save the last two Elite, and perhaps afterwards her own people from the Wraith threat here.

A sudden new sound grew in the distance. She snapped her attention on it, slowing down and stopping, her gaze sweeping up and round, seeking out the threat of Wraith ahead.

Except the noise wasn't Wraith – it was a male voice again, one in angry pain.

And this time, she recognised it as Oneakka's voice for certain. It was deeper than the previous men, as she had predicted, but she hadn't expected the rawness to the anger in his voice.

She broke back into a run towards the sound ahead of her39.

He raged again through the air, the sound full of fury and frustration that had Seeal running faster.

She was almost out of time.

His voice broke and faded away, the absence of the sound almost as bad as the cries themselves. Only then, fortunately, his voice burst through the air again. Louder, closer, but not close enough still.

She powered more into her legs, kicking up snow around her as she raced towards the decisive moment of her mission.

His voice rose louder, breaking up into a raw primitive male shout of pain and rage that she had never heard before. It sounded as if he were dying, yet screaming in furious anger and pain at the Queen.

Was he being fed upon?

There was no time now for her to be subtle in her approach, no time to carefully and delicately creep up on the Wraith. She would have to go for the pure element of surprise, to move decisively and instinctively. Such skills had won her numerous victories in the pit fights, and had saved her life more times than she could count, and today, she would find out if they would be enough to save someone else's life instead.

As his cries echoed through the trees, scaring ravens from their roosts and drawing Seeal towards her unknown fate, she tore onwards.

Ahead, in the fast approaching distance, she saw the increased light of the clearing, and the darker tones of the drone sentries behind their Queen. Then the red of the Queen's hair, leant forward. She could see little of Oneakka past the slumped tall figure of the other Elite, but she didn't need anything more now.

She just needed luck and skill.

She broke through the tree line abruptly, tearing across the snow just behind the level of the chairs in which the Elite sat, her eyes fixing immediately on the Queen.

The drones, taken completely by surprise, reacted slower than she had predicted, Oneakka's thundering cries perhaps having masked the sounds of her approach. In the corner of her eye, she saw them react, saw their arms lifting, the closest moving in her direction, but they were not her focus yet.

She pulled up, her boots sliding on the wet snow, as she reached behind her waist, the knife handle cold in her hand as she pulled it up and back.

Nothing existed in that moment except the weight of the knife and side of the Queen's head leant over Oneakka.

Seeal fixed her gaze on the creature's temple as she threw her arm forward, the knife sailing from her hand with almost beautiful ease.

Stunner fire blasted over her just after the handle left her fingers, the defuser instantly dancing the energy across her body, but she kept her attention forward, watching the knife tumble end over end through the air.

She had been throwing knives almost all her life, and as such judged the distances and speed of a throw without thinking, but in that second, though she never had before, she felt nervous fear that she might have judged it wrong this time. She watched the flash of light across the blade as it tumbled again and then imbedded itself into the side of the Queen's head.

The world around Seeal slammed back into real time again and the loud hammering blasting of the Wraith stunner fire defusing over her was suddenly all she could see and feel, but she would not let it stop her. The surge of victory at her throw was enough to push her on.

Wraith drones were halfway to her, but she rushed forward towards where the Queen was falling, firing one gun rapidly across the wall of Wraith as she ran. With her other hand she reached into her pocket and pulled out her one and only grenade.

Running across the open space, dead fed-upon bodies between her and the Wraith, she made it level with Oneakka as his chair began toppling over. She flipped the activation switch on the grenade in her right hand and slid to another stop, and once again threw what had to be a well aimed throw. Too close and it would hurt her and the Elite more than the Wraith, oh and Ulfur too, and too far then it would be next to useless.

The grenade sailed up and over the Wraith rushing towards her.

It disappeared behind their heads, but she was already firing her gun again, filling her now free right hand with her last weapon, sweeping blaster fire across the oncoming Wraith.

The grenade detonated, blossoming fire up into the cold air and thrusting Wraith forward and down over the fed-upon bodies. Hot air rushed at Seeal's face, but most of the grenade's blast had been obstructed by the Wraith in front of her, but she still heard the chairs fall over behind her. Oneakka was already on the ground next to her boot though, looking drugged and vulnerable, so she stepped in front of him, putting her defuser protected body between him and the stunner fire and the oncoming Wraith.

She fired as best she could, picking targets and hitting them, but the drones were sweeping round to her left quickly, splitting her focus. The tall Elite groaned from where he lay on his back in the snow, still strapped to his chair, so he would be no help, and she couldn't risk moving from her position now to put herself between him and the stunners too.

All she could do was keep firing.

The Wraith were so fast though, one drone almost upon her. She gave it her sole focus, bringing both weapons together towards it. She fired both guns, burning hot fiery holes into the creature's upper chest. It dropped to the snow, but already another was reaching past it. She risked stepping back for some distance away from the claws, but she had little distance to move with Oneakka right behind her. She turned her left arm, sweeping the butt of one gun against the Wraith's forearm with enough force to have broken bones in a human, whilst she simultaneously focused the other gun over that strike and shot the Wraith in the face. It tumbled aside, partially knocking down another drone as it fell.

And then, a new sound registered - a repetitive percussive sound of gunfire. She couldn't focus on it just yet though, for another Wraith was in her face, a feeding hand rushing at her. She turned her body sideways, dropping back her left shoulder and fired both guns up into the creature's abdomen. That didn't take it down though, despite the splatter of Wraith blood across her front. It doubled over but turned, following her. She fired again, repeatedly, whilst kicking up and out at it, then physically having to shove the dying thing away from her and Oneakka. Still flailing, despite its multiple wounds, the Wraith dropped away. Another Wraith was at her side though, so she brought round both guns, as physical weapons now not blasters, and slammed them both into the Wraith reaching for her. She was almost surprised that the effort was enough to stagger it aside, and she quickly kicked a heel out towards its closest knee, slamming weight against the kneecap, which surely had to be as vulnerable and as important for a Wraith as for humans. The drone grunted, barely feeling the kick, but it gave her one instant longer to bring one gun back round towards it, into the monster's face and fired again. She swore she saw bits of Wraith brains spray out behind it as it was flung back.

She lifted both guns up ready for the next attack, only there were no more incoming Wraith. Instead she saw only their backs, turned towards darkly dressed soldiers firing projectile weapons. She watched the Wraith twitch and shake under the onslaught of the rapid fire before dropping into the snow.

Satisfied that direction was covered, and that presumably these soldiers were from Atlantis, she swept her gaze to the left, to see Emmagan and more darkly dressed soldiers rushing past, firing forward. Seeal realised she could hear more Wraith growls from behind to the left. She dropped down into a crouch, sweeping her weapons in that direction to see Wraith rushing towards them, presumably having come from the Quantum base. She watched as Emmagan leapt and slashed at the first Wraith leaping at her, the snowlight flickering off fast moving swords and flying Wraith limbs. More Atlantis soldiers passed Emmagan, firing forward and driving the Wraith back.

Happy that direction was also covered, Seeal turned her attention down to Oneakka. He was out cold, one cheek pressed into the snow. She set one gun down onto the ice and reached for his throat, pressing her own cold fingers against his skin to feel for a pulse beneath his jaw. It was there, deep, pushing and steady. He was alive, but his skin was freezing.

Weapons fire shot by overhead, slamming into the trees behind her and the Elite, and she ducked low over Oneakka, covering her face and protecting him. She turned as soon as she did could, lifting the gun she still held, but there was another flash of light and she saw a sword slice through a Wraith close behind her. Its head fell away from its body as it collapsed down to the snow. A new male Elite stood beyond it, shoulder length light brown hair dancing above a thick thermal coat.

Coat.

Seeal turned her attention back to Oneakka, aware of the cold press of his bare arm under her hand.

"Halling," someone shouted to her right and she looked round to see a Pelydrian female Elite approaching, reaching for the other Elite's fallen chair.

"He's alive," Seeal shouted to her over the still loud din of the raging battle. "We need their coats." Past the new Elite, who was busy slicing through the webbing holding the tall Elite, who Seeal now had a name for of Halling, Seeal focused on the pile of previously discarded coats. Oneakka and Halling had been without their coats for too long, the cold could kill here too quickly, especially when you were unconscious and lying in the snow.

Keeping low, she dashed towards the pile of coats only a few metres away. She tugged out the coat she recognised as Oneakka's and the longer one that was Halling's.

Above there was a sudden loud explosion and she winced, looking upwards to see a blossom of fire high above the canopy, then a stuttering buzzing sound passing by overhead, lighting up the trees as it trailed away. There was a battle going on in the skies as well as on the ground – perhaps also in orbit too. The dead Queen probably had had a Hive in orbit, which presumably Atlantis' ship was engaging. Fortunately the burning Wraith fighter, if that was what it had been, was headed for a crash landing far away from them, but it added another worrying element to this fight if a fiery ball of death could descend upon them at any moment.

She couldn't control that though, so she focused on her own immediate situation. Elite coats in hand, she blasted at the few remaining Wraith as she scurried back towards Oneakka and where the Pelydrian female Elite had released Halling from his chair, having set it upright with him back on it. The male had dried blood across his face, but appeared alive enough for now.

Seeal tossed Halling's coat towards the female Elite and carried on towards Oneakka. She opened the thick layered jacket and laid it over his uppermost bare upper arm and neck. As she did so, he jerked slightly, coming round again, which was a good sign. She looked forward to the moment when she could point out to him that she had just helped save his life.

He was still strapped to the chair though, so Seeal patted down the side of his jacket draped over him, and quickly enough found a small knife. She pulled it free and began cutting through the fibrous membranes that were his restraints.

She didn't miss the fact that the new younger male Elite had suddenly appeared at her side as she did so. Neither had she missed that the gun she had put down on the snow before had already been confiscated. She was annoyed at that, considering what she had just done for the Elite, but she supposed she was still the Elite's prisoner. One good act didn't acquit her of what they saw as years worth of crimes and collaboration. That fact suddenly settled heavily upon her as she freed the last of the restraints from around Oneakka. Her previous revelations about herself and her past suddenly felt annoyingly real, including the fact that she had missed her chance to escape for sure now. She hadn't been killed, which was a serious plus, but the reality was that she was still a prisoner bound for a seriously long sentence and she had accepted that future.

Oneakka freed, she held the knife up over her shoulder by its blade, offering its handle up to the male Elite watching over her. He took it without comment, and she focused on reaching over Oneakka to free his wrists, to find that they were held together with chains. When did Wraith use chains?

"I'll free him," the male Elite stated, stepping over the slowly coming round Oneakka and crouching down into the snow. Seeal saw a small device appear in the man's hand, which he set round one of the chain's links. A tiny bright blue light shot from one part of the device to the other, burning almost instantly through the metal chains in its way. Impressive technology.

As the male Elite tugged the chains free from around Oneakka's wrists, Seeal sat back on her haunches, taking in the situation around her. Adrenaline was fast leaving her system, having been flowing for a seriously long time, leaving her feeling a little shaky and cold.

The battle was over now, though there was some shouting from behind her. She looked round to see Ulfur was at the heart of the commotion. Typical.

"Stand down!" An Atlantis soldier was shouting at her brother, whilst he and four more of his group were attempting to pull Ulfur off Khor's clearly dead body. Ulfur's forehead was thick with blood, and considering his arms were still restrained behind him, it could only mean that he had used his thick forehead as his weapon.

"Stand down!" The Atlantis man ordered again as the men finally managed to get Ulfur back onto his knees.

"Keep him under guard," the Pelydrian female ordered, drawing Seeal's attention back round to her. Halling was sat upright, in his coat once more, and she was applying a second thick bandage around his head. He had the dazed look of a concussion to Seeal's eyes.

Oneakka moved beside her and she realised she still had her hand on his arm. She sat back further to give him room to sit up, reaching out to adjust his jacket briefly so it would sit around his shoulders. He groaned loudly, his eyes tightly shut, as he sat upright in the snow.

"Are you injured, Oneakka?" The young male Elite asked, who was once again standing behind Seeal's left shoulder, clearly keeping an eye on her as much as for any Wraith that might suddenly appear out of the trees.

Oneakka groaned as he shook his head, setting his large elbows on his knees and hanging his head forward in what looked like pain, or perhaps nausea. Seeal edged back a little more in case he was about to empty his stomach.

"He was drugged and tortured by the Queen," she reported to the Elite.

"With the new Quantum?" The Pelydrian Elite asked him.

"No," Oneakka muttered, apparently aware enough to hear and answer. "Yes," he amended. "There was never a widespread mind-reading version of the drug. The Queen was making it solely for herself."

"You are sure?" The female asked him as she secured the end of the bandage above Halling's ear.

Oneakka nodded, but then groaned and lowered his head further.

"The base has been emptied and secured," Emmagan's voice arrived from the right and Seeal looked round to see her and several Atlantis soldiers approaching. They all looked slightly out of breath, but pleased.

"The Daedalus has taken out the Hive, they're pretty sure they got all the darts too," one of the men reported, and Seeal realised he looked familiar. He was tall and quite handsome, which tended to register in the memory, but Seeal recalled why she had noted him in particular previously. He had been one of the two men who had accompanied the Elite onto Dreamstation. How long had the Elite been working with Atlantis?

The man moved forward, nodding to his people, his attention and manner suggesting he was the soldier in charge of the group. "You alright, Big Guy?" He asked down towards Oneakka.

Oneakka lifted his head slightly and his blue eyes opened enough to peer up at the man with a glare. "Took your time getting here, Sheppard," he muttered.

So this was Major Sheppard - the one Pyaban had mentioned, the Atlantis man who had been present at Iketani' end.

"You don't have to say thank you right now," Sheppard responded to Oneakka. "I can see you're too busy trying not to throw up, you can tell me later." It was a surprisingly familiar piece of banter, which once again made Seeal wonder how close those of Atlantis were working with the Elite, with the Alliance.

Oneakka didn't respond with a quick retort though, he simply shut his eyes and sighed heavily as he dropped his head down again. Seeal almost felt sorry for him, but that would be stupid, he was her enemy who wanted to put her in a cell for the rest of her life

"Are you sure you are unharmed, Oneakka?" The Pelydrian female asked, crouching down beside Seeal, after making sure to carefully move around Kari' desiccated body.

Seeal glanced at the withered remains and then up at the shadow cast over them. Emmagan was stood tall on the other side of the body, and her eyes were wide and hollow as she stared down at what was left of Kari.

"The Queen just did her brain scanning thing on me," Oneakka muttered.

Seeal tore her eyes away from Emmagan's haunted look to focus on Oneakka again.

"Seems your thick head saved you this time," she told him.

He lifted his head slightly, one eye opening and a blue eye glared at her.

She felt better now.

She leant forward a fraction. "You can thank me later," she told him with a smug smile, echoing Sheppard's words.

His eye closed and his head lowered again.

The Pelydrian Elite lifted a purple-coloured hand to this pulse, whilst she also studied her Elite electronic sensor pad, which would display basic sensors readings of a person, including temperature, pulse rate and perhaps more. "We need to get you and Halling both back to the Sythus," she stated. Back to where Seeal would be a prisoner.

"The base is secure," Emmagan reported, her voice sounding colder than before. "There is a small Quantum factory inside, we will take everything as evidence and destroy the base afterwards."

"We need to take that as well," Oneakka added, his eyes still closed as he struggled his arms into his jacket, gesturing to the side where a piece of Wraith tech sat in the snow. "It's what took us out."

"A new form of stunner?" the other male Elite asked from behind Seeal's shoulder. Her legs aching from having been crouched down so long, Seeal stood up next to him, moving back from Oneakka. Her work was done. She had saved two Elite, had given them enough time for Atlantis to arrive, just as she had planned. She should feel empty now it was over or cheerful at her success, but instead she simply felt resigned. She had made her choices and now it was time to face the consequences.

Orders were given to those from Atlantis. Emmagan was going to stay with half of them to go through the base, whilst the rest would accompany the injured back to the Portal.

Emmagan turned away sharply once the decision had been made, brushing past Sheppard, and headed away back towards the base. Sheppard watched her leaving for a second, a deep frown across his handsome features, before he quickly looked away, continuing his orders to his people. It had been the tiniest of moments, but it had struck Seeal as significant. She had always been good at reading people after all.

With loud groans, both Halling and Oneakka were helped upright. Sheppard moved forward, surprising Seeal as he took hold of Oneakka's left arm and steadied him. The male Elite without a name, who was clearly Seeal's sentry, stretched out a supportive hand to Oneakka's other shoulder.

"You sure you can walk?" Sheppard asked.

"Of course," Oneakka muttered moving forward, only to almost fall back down to the snow again. Seeal reached out instinctively in that moment, grabbing hold of his right arm. On his other side, Sheppard slid under Oneakka's arm, holding him up, so Seeal did the same her side. If she was going to walk back to her imprisonment, she would prefer to be doing something, and besides it only added to the material she could laud over Oneakka later.

With their support, Oneakka managed a few shaky steps, each one more secure, but he seemed as if he was fighting against losing consciousness again.

"If you think you're gonna throw up, let us know, right," Sheppard muttered from the other side of him.

"Maybe," Oneakka muttered with surprising clarity, which surprised her considering the state he was in.

Ahead of them, the purple-skinned Elite was helping Halling across the snow, a few Atlantis soldiers keeping pace. Several others of their group had laid the empty coats over the withered remains of the Division squad, and stood beyond them, Robiah looked on with a pale face. Seeal hadn't noticed him earlier, perhaps he had held back until after the fighting had ended. After what had happened, what they had survived, she wondered if it would change the man at all, but she doubted it.

"What about this guy, Sir?" An Atlantis man asked of Sheppard as they approached where Ulfur was still knelt.

Seeal properly focused on her brother for the first time since the battle had begun. A part of her was pleased he was alive, but seeing him knelt weakly in the snow, blood drying on his face around his confused worried eyes, she felt something entirely new for him. Pity.

Ulfur turned away towards where Robiah stood. "You promised me my clean record. I brought you here as you asked. I didn't know about the Wraith!" He argued quickly, his voice rising with nervous anger. "I fulfilled my end of the bargain."

Robiah looked away from his dead men and gave Ulfur an assessing look.

Moving past behind Ulfur, helping keep Oneakka moving forward, Seeal took the moment to offer her brother some advice. "Robiah doesn't keep his promises."

"I keep them," Robiah insisted immediately. "You wanted your clean record-"

"He walked you into a trap," the Pelydrian Elite noted, pausing ahead with Halling. "He knew something was not right."

"I didn't know he was a damn Wraith!" Ulfur protested hotly. The fact of how he had killed Khor was perhaps evidence enough of that, but Ulfur had always been quick to switch sides when it suited him. "I'm no worshipper."

"He didn't know," Oneakka slurred out next to her.

"He is of no use to us," the other male Elite put in.

"I can't promise a completely clean record, Ulfur," Robiah confessed, "But I can give you your freedom and the chance to start again."

"You promised me!" Ulfur bellowed, and the Atlantis soldiers, who had been backing off from him, tightened their hold of their weapons.

Robiah held up his hands. "I will do what I can, that is all I can promise."

"You said-" Ulfur began again.

"Give it up," Seeal said over her shoulder as she moved away with Oneakka and Sheppard. "Take your freedom and run, Ulfur."

"You!" Ulfur bellowed behind her. "It is no coincidence that this all happened on the day you appear again to haunt me!"

Seeal rolled her eyes at the usual blame being tossed at her. "I was the one who just saved you from being fed upon by the Wraith, _Brother_," she threw over her shoulder.

"Don't pretend that you came back for me," Ulfur shouted at her back. "You want out of your chains, not me out of mine. The ones you've put me in _all_ _my_ _life_, Cursed Witch."

She steadfastly ignored that one and just kept on slowly walking forward, focusing on supporting Oneakka's weight. She felt Sheppard's attention on her, but she just focused on walking away from her brother yet again.

"You see what you do? What you always do. And what happens to me afterwards," Ulfur raged behind her.

She just kept walking. Today she was choosing to face her responsibilities, her consequences, but Ulfur's choices were _not_ her responsibility. She couldn't carry that guilt over him anymore.

"What happens to _me_, Cursed One?"

It wasn't her responsibility, it wasn't her fault.

"Cursed one!" His voice echoed loudly, hotly and full of so much angry pent up emotion. She swore even the ravens from the trees above were all focused on her back in that moment.

She kept on walking.

"Sister!" He shouted next.

Then "Seeal," he called instead.

She stopped, Oneakka and Sheppard stilling with her.

Ulfur had called her by her new given name, 'Free One'. She glanced past Oneakka to Sheppard, who seemed to understand her look, for he drew Oneakka's weight further towards him. Behind him another Atlantis soldier moved closer with the intent to help hold up the Elite if necessary.

Seeal turned and faced her brother.

Strangely, he seemed rather small where he was knelt, his face messed, his hair limp, and blood drying across his skin.

"You've done this to me again," Ulfur stated, his voice weaker. He no longer seemed the big angry Glisi man to her now, he seemed to be that young boy who had been forced to run away from their world with her. The boy who had cried for days afterwards, lost and homesick for their people who had tried to kill them both. They had been forced into ostracism, and he had never gotten over it. He had never really grown up emotionally from that, had never moved on with his life.

Maybe she had never done so either, until today.

Standing here again in the cold of her home world, she no longer felt that old burning anger that formed a deep numbing cold inside. Instead she felt real acceptance at what had happened. It hadn't been her fault, and it hadn't been Ulfur's. They had both been victims, and she was more pleased today than ever before that she had escaped this planet.

"You ruined my life," Ulfur wailed angrily, "Make him give me my clean record, Sister. You _owe_ me this for forcing me from my home!"

"You _are_ home, Ulfur," she replied quickly, lifting her hands towards the trees and snow around them. "It has been twenty-six yearly cycles since we left. Go find the camp, go back to our people."

Ulfur glanced aside almost nervously as if he had only just realised that he was in fact home. But, he was afraid, she could see it clearly, but that was his own curse to carry, to overcome. She could at least offer him this one last piece of advice, and perhaps this time he would listen to her.

"Tell them that I forced you to leave with me all those years ago, that I turned your life to ruins," she told him. "Tell them that I am dead."

Surprise crossed his bloodied pale face.

"Tell them that the curse has been lifted," she concluded resolutely, and turned away from him one last time.

She returned to Oneakka's side and lifted his right arm back over her shoulders, aware of many eyes on her as they moved forward again.

Ulfur said nothing more behind her, and she didn't look back once.

All through the trek back to the Portal, Oneakka's weight growing even heavier, she kept silent and steady as she moved forward. Leaving her world for the last time, leaving her brother where she had always wanted him to be, she walked towards her future. It might well be that she was walking into a prison cell for the rest of her life, but even in that act, she was freely choosing the path of her life now.

For the first time, she was truly The Free One.

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TBC


	20. Momentum

**Note:** Sorry to everyone for not having posted in ages! Thank you to those who sent me messages, and sorry not to have had chance to reply – very bad of me. I've had a crazy couple of months, stressful in practically every way Real Life can be, and I've not had time or energy to write/edit. So deepest apologies, but I am alive and kicking, and there's not many chapters left of this fic. I hope you can all forgive me. Love to you all. Wedj xxxx

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**Chapter 20 - Momentum**

The Infirmary was still almost as full as the last time John was in here, most of the beds occupied by the still unconscious Quantum high flyers from the east pier. The place was calmer though, which might have something to do with the five Marines Sumner had on sentry duty throughout the room. Carson wasn't happy at the military presence in his work space, but he had stopped complaining about it openly. Instead he just muttered about it under his breath as he worked.

Ford was no happier, though he should be considering he could now feel all his limbs and talk again. He had apparently taken several direct shots of the Wraith stunners the moment he had stepped through the Gate on the Glisi world, so it had taken him a good hour to come round and then a few more to be able to walk and talk properly. The Lieutenant was currently sat up in his infirmary bed, piled up against a pile of pillows, and looking like a sulky kid who had missed Christmas.

"I always miss the best missions," Ford muttered unhappily.

John tried not to smile too brightly over the top of the last of his late breakfast. He had picked up a tray of food on his way here after his debrief with Colonels Carter and Sumner. Ford hadn't wanted to share any of the meal, so John had enjoyed the toast, coffee and fruit alone while perched on the end of Ford's bed. After missing a whole night's worth of sleep with Teyla and then leading an early morning mission, John was feeling the need for the sugar and caffeine hit. Not that telling Ford of all he had missed in precise Technicolor detail wasn't entertaining enough.

"Then you shouldn't get stunned within a second of stepping through the Gate," John teased before biting into his apple.

Ford frowned heavily from his mountain of pale Infirmary pillows.

He felt for the kid, knowing how eager he always was to get into the thick of any fight, usually with the most advanced piece of weaponry available. Which reminded John of another lover of weaponry. The Elite Si had appeared on the Glisi world to assist in the clean-up of the Wraith base and the scattered Wraith bodies, and as usual had been a walking armoury unto himself. John had met the guy in the middle of the mess, the Elite workers accompanying the big guy seemingly happy enough to work alongside John's own people. Between them, he and Si had overseen the clean-up, which had mostly involved Si issuing orders in his loud calm voice and John then nodding that he agreed with the plan.

After Kari' body had been bagged up and respectfully carried away, Si had been the only Elite presence for John to liaise with. It wasn't often that John felt short when stood with other guys, but Si would have managed to make The Rock look tiny. And he was as talkative as a rock too, not that he wasn't polite and friendly enough, but the long silences had made John uncomfortable. Probably because he was silently convinced that Si knew about him and Teyla and was purposefully not mentioning it. Or perhaps that had all been in John's head. Either way, he had 'entertained' Si with a blow-by-blow account of the battle, a guided tour of the site, and then a lengthy one-sided discussion on the merits of full cold weather gear. By the end of it, John had begun to annoy himself, but the Wraith bodies had all been piled up and set alight, with the exception of a handful for the Elite to test, and few for Carson. Hopefully they would help advance the Doc's research in the retrovirus, which had apparently hit something of a brick wall lately. As well as the bodies, Carson also had a selection of samples from the Wraith base, which apparently the Elite were happy enough with them having. In all, it had been a perfect example of efficient and friendly co-operation, which John had pointed out to Si. That final statement had finally gotten a direct answer, for the big guy had looked down at John and nodded solemnly and then had actually cracked a small smile. It had felt like a small miracle, and worth all John's former nervous chatter.

"Let us hope it is a portent of the future," Si had intoned before turning and leading his people away from the empty base and burning bodies. Colonel Carter had been particularly happy to hear that. Sumner, of course, had been his usual distant, sceptical self, but all in all, it had been a successful mission.

With one exception.

The sharp clear memory of Kari' shrivelled body flashed through John's mind in an instant. The image felt so fresh that he had to drop his attention to focus intently on his apple to distract himself. It didn't work, because how could he not feel a little guilty, as was always the way after a mission when you had arrived too late to save everyone. At least they had gotten there before Oneakka and Halling had joined her. Not that the two big Elite warriors hadn't been in the best of circumstances, Halling having been bloodied and limping, and Oneakka out of it on the dead Queen's super Quantum drug. Two Elite saved and a frighteningly dangerous Queen and her Hive had been eliminated, so it was a victory, except for losing Kari.

John hadn't really known the woman, and in fact he was pretty sure that she had still mistrusted him until her last moments, but she had seemed a strong powerful Elite warrior. Yet, seeing her body, no different really from any other fed-upon remains, had disturbed John in a new and haunting way.

Looking down at the withered, twisted body, her face locked in a grimace of screaming agony, had stirred up feelings in his chest that he had been managing to suppress for the last couple of months. That even Elite he knew could be killed – strong female Elite - like Teyla.

It was foolish of him to be surprised by that fact, no one was immortal, no Elite warrior, as powerful and skilled as they were, were immune to death. Yet, to think of the danger Teyla walked into, willingly, each day...it frightened him; as had the way she had responded to seeing Kari' body.

He turned his apple round again, unnecessarily studying the core and the last of the sweet flesh.

He had seen as Teyla had noticed Kari' body lying in the snow. He had seen the instant the dark angry silence had descended over her as she had moved forward to stand over Kari.

He knew what it was like to lose those you fought beside, to feel the deep bone-jarring guilt that you had survived and they hadn't. To obsess over what you could have done differently that wouldn't have resulted in them dying and you surviving. Yet there had been something darker in her reaction that had worried him.

And that she hadn't looked him in the eye again afterwards. She had sunk into herself and had set about her work without comment. Once he had returned from the Gate after helping Oneakka and Halling through, he had seen her helping carry Kari' body-bag back along the worn tracks through the snow back to the Gate. He hadn't seen her again since.

She no doubt had her own reports to file, Oneakka and Halling to check over, and of course Kari to bury. If the Elite buried their dead. He was almost certain he didn't want to know – it would only add more fuel to the disturbed worried sensations in his chest.

He would just have liked to have met her eyes for a moment, to let her know that she wasn't alone in her grief, that he was there for her if she needed him.

"You're looking better, Lieutenant." Carson's bright friendly voice jarred John back into the present as the doc stepped up beside Ford's bed.

Ford lifted his sulky gaze to the Scotsman. "I was until the Major here began taunting me."

John smiled, the sensation a little forced through his inner worries, but he meant it. He was pleased Ford was okay, and right now the kid was the best diversion away from his niggling concern over Teyla. "I was only trying to paint you an accurate picture of what you missed, Lieutenant," he replied as he bit into the apple again, taking in the last good mouthful of the sweetly sharp fruit.

"Yes, thank you, _Sir_," Ford muttered darkly, and John smiled tauntingly.

"Most people," Carson said as he checked over Ford's monitors, "would consider missing out on a fight against the Wraith as a good thing, not something to complain about."

"You missed explosions and everything," John put in.

Ford glared at him again.

"Instead you were here, fast asleep," John continued as he focused on the apple, picking out a seed from the stripped core.

"He took at least three blasts of Wraith stunners," Carson responded defensively for his patient.

"Probably saved your ass by doing so," Ford added quickly. "But then you were too busy hiding behind the Elite."

"Best place to be in a battle, I've found," John responded with a smile as he set the apple core aside.

"Sure, hide behind warrior women," Ford tried to bait him.

"Fine by me," John replied with a grin.

Ford sighed out heavily with clear defeat. "I miss all the fun."

"Come now, Lieutenant," Carson offered, "I'm sure they'll be plenty more battles to wage soon enough." And wasn't that the truth.

"At least we won," Ford added more positively.

"Yep," John replied, "and stopped the spread of a potentially lethal new Quantum wielding Queen."

"Hopefully that'll mean something to all our 'visitors' currently in the city," Carson said.

"It's got to," Ford insisted. "We helped save all their asses."

John shared a more experienced glance with Carson. The spin doctors up in the auditorium would probably work the situation to their own means.

"Maybe," John replied.

"If it wasn't for us-" Ford began only to stop midsentence and abruptly sit up taller in his sick bed. John didn't need to look round to see what had caused the military response in the Lieutenant.

He still looked round though.

Colonel Sumner stood in the far doorway, feet planted and hands on his hips as he surveyed the Infirmary. From what John had heard, Sumner had been awake all the hours of the last few days, keeping near constant watch over the refugees in the east pier to prevent another riot. It had worked too, since there hadn't been any more trouble, and the refugees participating in the treaty negotiations had stopped most of their loud disruptive taunting of the Alliance delegation. Sometimes Sumner's heavy-handed attitude worked well. And it certainly worked well with Ford, who still turned into an eager cadet around the Colonel, snapping out brief responses and doing everything strictly by the book. Around John, Ford was less of a stickler for such perfection, but around Sumner he always reverted.

The problem was that every time John saw that transformation, the old defiant part of his personality wanted to behave the exact opposite to the eager-to-please Lieutenant. But, he was a team leader now, and an Ambassador for Atlantis to Athos and the Elite, which meant that he had to play by the book. Or at least as close as he was capable. So he straightened his back and felt a more serious vibe pass over him at the sight of his commanding officer, but he comforted himself in the knowledge that next to Ford's textbook straight spine, he would still look more laid back.

Sumner's attention was still focused on assessing the many beds filled with refugees and their visitors though, sweeping over them all with that same stern almost unreadable expression of his. He looked at people as if they were enemies unless proven otherwise, or if he knew you weren't any enemy, then you certainly weren't up to scratch. It was irritatingly close to an expression John's father had worn frequently.

The steely gaze finally reached John and Ford, and it stopped with laser focus. John felt the mattress shift under him as Ford tried to sit up straighter. John glanced at the kid's serious expression as he nodded respectfully to their commander. John wondered if he had ever been as eager and serious at Ford's age.

John looked back round to see what response Ford's nod would get, and, as predicted, Sumner returned it with the slightest of nods. And then the Colonel's gaze focused on John. Sumner angled his head aside sharply in a silent command for John to join him.

Surprised and more than a little cautious, John rose up from Ford's bed. "Looks like I'm wanted," he joked half-heartedly.

"I'm sure he just wants to compliment you on the successful mission this morning," Carson suggested, which though kind of the doc, surely wasn't ever going to happen. Besides, John had already had his debrief with both Colonels, so whatever this was about, it was something new. Great, because John was already tired enough today!

With his game face on though, John moved across the Infirmary, moving at a swift pace, but purposefully not running to the Colonel's side.

Sumner waited until John was a few metres away from him and then turned in the doorway, leading the way out of the Infirmary to the corridor beyond. John followed, leaving the bright, busy Infirmary to the quieter narrower space of the hallway outside.

Sumner was a few steps ahead, but still moving away, so John followed.

The corridor opened up into a junction, in which two of the Alliance delegation were waiting, apparently for the Colonel. Ambassadors Tyre and Fe-Rrara, representatives of the Alliance's Military Council, were stood to one side, their two Marine escorts stood a respectful distance away. Both glanced round as Sumner joined them and then nodded towards John as he approached.

"Major Sheppard," Ambassador Fe-Rrara greeted him and Tyre nodded with what looked like a smile. "Thank you for joining us."

"Sure," John replied, a little thrown by the situation, and the location.

"The ambassadors are both very grateful for our work this morning," Sumner began, his gruff tone a little too close to sarcasm for John's comfort given the situation.

"Indeed," Fe-Rrara replied, neither not hearing Sumner's sarcasm or choosing to take the words at face value. "Your people fought bravely."

"We did what we could, Ma'am," John replied carefully. "Just wish we could have gotten there sooner, maybe have saved Honoured Elite Kari as well."

Both the ambassadors nodded gravely, but they were short, almost habitual nods that didn't seem as heartfelt as John would have liked. Or was he simply being sensitive? Worrying over exactly how often they heard of Elite being killed. Probably too often.

"Honoured Elite Kari will be a great loss to the Elite and the Alliance," Fe-Rrara added. "As an Elite warrior she helped save more lives than anyone can calculate, and that is always the focus of the Elite, of all the Military force. To fight the Wraith back, to save lives, and to add a piece to the final victory."

John nodded, feeling that perhaps he was supposed to have understood some subtext in that, but he wasn't sure what it was. He glanced at Sumner, but realised he wouldn't get any help there, so looked to Tyre instead. The Satedan male's expression was serious, but his eyes were sharp and bright.

"And to that end, your assistance today has been noted by those who understand the value of risking personnel," Tyre said.

John glanced to Fe-Rrara and back, finally thinking he understood what was going on. "Meaning the Military Council," he asked.

"Us, the Elite, and the Alliance Military as a whole," Fe-Rrara replied, angling her full head of green hair. "We understand the risk you take in sending in your teams to assist us, and it is gratefully appreciated."

John nodded again. "After all the Alliance Military and the Elite have done to fight the Wraith in this galaxy, anything we can do to help..." He almost wished Woolsey could have been here to have heard that politically savvy response.

"Yes," Tyre replied, "and there does seem to be much that Atlantis can do to help fight the Wraith, as you have demonstrated before today. We," Tyre paused and glanced to Fe-Rrara and then Sumner, "believe then that it is time that this treaty is signed."

John waited for more, but Tyre closed his mouth and waited.

"I agree," John replied carefully.

"Too much time has been wasted already on the precise technical detail of what is clearly a mutually beneficial treaty," Fe-Rrara said.

John nodded, though bet Woolsey would have had a near fit to have heard how unimportant 'precise detail' was to them. "I don't think it's the details anymore that's the problem," he suggested carefully, glancing at Sumner. The Colonel didn't look back at him, but did nod.

"We concur, and it was always going to be that way," Fe-Rrara replied.

"You think the High Council are never going to sign the treaty?" Sumner asked.

"Their likely strategy is to continue to stall and twist words so that the treaty will be kept in a holding pattern for as long as it serves them best. If one day they decide they want something from Atlantis then suddenly the terms will be agreed," Fe-Rrara replied.

John planted his feet and crossed his arms, feeling more comfortable in this strange huddle of a meeting in full view of half the city passing by. "So why come to Atlantis at all? Why bring so many representatives and ambassadors?"

"Because they never intended the discussions to go on so long, and to bore the butts of so many of the highest and finest of the Alliance will only speed up how quickly the discussions end," Tyre replied. "Or that's what they intended."

John nodded with understanding. "Until the whole assassination attempt and the Quantum situation turned up."

"Exactly," Tyre replied.

"So they sent in Nolfi to twist things further," John continued, "and you guys came in to act as a counter-balance."

Fe-Rrara nodded.

John considered them both. "Or to force the treaty through?" He guessed.

"We have attempted less aggressive methods so far," Fe-Rrara replied.

"But you're not winning your war of words," Sumner concluded.

"No," Tyre replied, "not so far, but we have more weighted words we could use."

"Threats, you mean," Sumner translated.

"I wouldn't want to call them that," Fe-Rrara replied, but her smile said just the opposite.

John glanced away at a small passing group of refugees, none of whom appeared ready to attack the Alliance ambassadors, but there were some resentful glances. There would be more than resentful glances among the High Council if the Military Council began to throw their weight around though. Teyla had told him enough to understand the delicate power balance between the two Councils. The Military Council, though newly formed and solely focused on military aspects of the Alliance, still in truth welded a huge amount of clout. If it came down to it, Teyla believed that the majority of the Alliance worlds would vote with the Military Council on most matters, since they were trusted with the defence of the Alliance. Unlike in most of Earth's history, the Alliance's military weren't seen as a threat to gain power for themselves, they were highly respected and valued by most Alliance citizens. Unlike the Elite, the main Military force weren't naturally superpowered in some way, or given the very latest of advanced technology. They were all like John, just regular people working to protect their own. And so they had done so, big style. The Elite were the sharp vital point of the Alliance's success, but the massive Military force was the rest of the spear. They were the winning drive of the Alliance, they kept everyone safe, and as such, they had a power that the High Council never would. They had the deep respect and gratitude on their side from pretty much every soul in the Alliance. Teyla believed that if a day came when the Military Council needed to call on that support, it would decimate the High Council's powerbase. Teyla didn't believe that the Military would try to take control of the democratic rule of the High Council, but their influence was clearly growing. Already certain bills had been put through the High Council against opposition because they had the known backing of the Military Council, and that had to have ruffled some feathers within the High Council.

But pushing through this treaty seemed a strange place to start that kind of aggression between the Military and High Councils. And in doing so, would that put Atlantis at greater risk as being the focal point of the flash of hostilities?

"Why now?" John asked the ambassadors. "As I understand it, there's a good deal of tension between the Military Council and the High Council." Both ambassadors' expressions confirmed the point without them saying anything. "Is this treaty important enough to the Military Council?" It was a risky question and perhaps one that most politicians would never answer truthfully, but they were all soldiers here, and John got the feeling that these two ambassadors were fans of speaking plainly.

"The Military has concerns of its own," Fe-Rrara replied. "We have an immense war along our vast border, and one particular area which, when won, will seal a massive area free of the Wraith. There are greater concerns to us than arguing over what is a simple enough treaty that will benefit both our peoples."

"Which is why the High Council doesn't want it," John realised.

"Exactly," Fe-Rrara replied.

"So, we've been caught up in the tensions between the Councils. The High Council know you want this treaty, so they _really_ don't want it," John said.

"Not until it serves them," Tyre added. "For our interests, to have Atlantis as an ally will no doubt be vital in the future of our mutual war with the Wraith. Most in the Alliance support the treaty, despite what the High Council would have you believe, and arguing over it like spoilt children is just a waste of valuable time for us."

"But you need to win this battle over them," Sumner put in. "You might have let the High Council win on other matters, but you need this treaty with us."

"Not sure _need _is the most accurate term," Tyre replied pointedly.

"It would serve both of us well to see this treaty through," Fe-Rrara said.

"We agree," Sumner replied, surprising John a little. Colonel Carter had had to argue for this treaty with him for hours from what John had heard, but here he was, fighting the corner for it. "Spending days arguing over a simple deal to watch each other's backs is a waste of our valuable time too."

"Which is why this treaty needs to go through now. No more time-wasting," Fe-Rrara concluded, looking at John.

John frowned. Because _not_ seeing the treaty through had been what he had been slaving over these past days, hours spent arguing and supporting Woolsey and Faxon. Just because these guys decided it was time, wasn't going to make the problems go away.

"You find a way, we'll sign the treaty," John replied, though realised perhaps that should be Colonel Carter's line.

"We will, once they reach us," Fe-Rrara replied cryptically.

John frowned.

"You plan to use this morning's mission to push the treaty through," Sumner considered.

"If we needed a better example of successful co-operation between our peoples I can't find it," Tyre replied, smiling.

"You think that'll be enough to-" John began, but there was a sudden commotion down one of the corridors. He looked round to see Nolfi striding down towards John's huddle, his lackey Edyis strutting after him, and about six Marines following them.

"Ambassadors," Nolfi called loudly, his voice echoing down the hallway and into the junction with a high tone of delight. "How interesting to find you gathered here."

At which point John understood why Tyre and Fe-Rrara had wanted this meeting out here in the open – they wanted Nolfi to hear of it. John glanced at the ambassadors as they all turned towards Nolfi' approach and he saw Tyre smile faintly towards him. This was going to be interesting.

"Councillor," Fe-Rrara greeted Nolfi with just the slightest touch of distaste in her tone.

"I hope that neither of you have hurt yourself in any way," Nolfi replied as he strode into the junction, his face flushed and his eyes sharp. He thought he had caught them plotting, John guessed, and he was clearly happy to have broken up the party.

"Councillor?" Tyre asked with a frown.

"To be stood here outside Atlantis' healing bay of course. I assume that is why you are stood here talking," Nolfi asked as he arrived at their open huddle. "Or are you visiting some of the unfortunates that took it upon themselves to partake in Quantum?" He stopped and clasped his hands in front of him with a smile. John was pretty sure that body language meant he was actually protecting his most delicate area, which suggested he wasn't as confident as he appeared.

"Neither," Fe-Rara replied. "Though, Major Sheppard was visiting those injured on the mission this morning. The mission to rescue members of the Alliance and Elite."

"How good of him to visit those injured," Nolfi replied glancing at John and then Sumner. "How nice to have the time to do such things."

"It is a vital part of all leadership to watch over those they lead," Fe-Rrara replied. "When was the last time you visited those in a Military hospital, Councillor?" Burn.

"I leave that to the good leadership of the Military Council, after all, that is _your_ role is it not? To watch over our Military?" The creep was good at bating back the attacks; John had to give him that.

"And ultimately therefore ensure the survival of _all_ in the Alliance," Fe-Rrara retaliated immediately.

"And from outside of it too now?" Nolfi asked. "Do you care so much for those in Atlantis that you visit them in their sick beds?"

"We value all those who would risk their lives to fight the Wraith," Fe-Rrara replied sternly.

"I would have thought your time would be better spent thinking over your own people's needs, rather than those of Atlantis," Nolfi suggested. "Since the treaty negotiations have not yet restarted, it is strange to find you here discussing matters with the opposition. Such a thing could be considered suspicious by some."

"How so?" Tyre asked, his shoulders tensing as he stepped forward right into Nolfi' personal space. The tension in the corridor junction suddenly jumped up several notches. Behind Nolfi' shoulder, John saw Edyis' eyes slide towards the watching Marines.

Nolfi looked directly at Tyre, their heights almost identical. "Do not presume to intimidate me, Ambassador," Nolfi said. "I am from Rosenthal, my first level teacher was more threatening than you."

"I haven't even begun to insult you, Councillor, let alone intimidate," Tyre replied with what sounded like pleasurable promise in the threat.

"Is there something we can help you with, Ambassador Nolfi?" Sumner cut in, stepping forward to stand almost alongside Tyre.

Nolfi pulled his eyes away from Tyre slowly and finally looked at Sumner. There was a long beat in which more silent intimidation bounced back and forth between the Colonel and the Ambassador as they sized each other up. John watched it cautiously.

"I was simply walking through the beautiful corridors of your city, Colonel Sumner," Nolfi replied finally, but his eyes still held the same level of tense assessment. "And was surprised to come upon you here talking with the ambassadors."

"Talking over the treaty," Sumner replied succinctly.

"Yes, I imagine that you were," Nolfi replied, glancing at the ambassadors.

"And this morning's joint mission," Fe-Rrara added. "The one in which Atlantis assisted in preventing the spread of a dangerous new form of Quantum."

"Of course," Nolfi replied, the passive aggression abruptly slipping away behind the sudden return of his slick politician mask. "Of which we are all deeply grateful to Atlantis for assisting the Elite, which clearly ultimately benefited them as well as us."

"That is the purpose of all treaties is it not?" Fe-Rrara asked.

"We do not have a treaty between us currently," Nolfi replied.

"Which is why the Elite had to arrange the mission with Atlantis without any standards of measurement of a formal treaty, and why Atlantis gains their benefits of Wraith bodies to test and the new Quantum based drug to analyse."

Nolfi frowned faintly. He hadn't heard that Atlantis had gotten some of the new Quantum. "Shared risk should respond with shared gain," he replied quickly though, the phrase sounding like a quote from somewhere.

"Exactly, Ambassador," Fe-Rrara replied with an overly sweet smile. "I am glad that we understand each other."

Nolfi' expression shifted again, betraying another slight frown. "All in the Alliance understand that, Ambassador. We have all worked for many long dangerous years to establish our unity, and it is for that reason that we must choose carefully those we treaty with outside of our borders."

John frowned at that twisted logic – co-operation within the Alliance, but not with those outside of it?

"You do not need to speak of the danger with us, Councillor," Tyre replied. "Fe-Rrara and I both still fight the Wraith at our borders, and we have our battle scars. You will find _all_ in the Military Council do."

John glanced at Nolfi and back to Tyre, aware that everyone else within earshot was doing the same. Ford was going to be so annoyed he missed this.

Nolfi was quiet for a few minutes as he and Tyre stared at each other, the subtle layers of threats and complex politics unspoken, but almost palpable in the air between them.

"I, of course, respect everything the Military has done, and does do each day for everyone within the Alliance," Nolfi said eventually, his voice quieter. "However, that cannot justify anything. Fighting Wraith does not give you the higher ground on all matters."

Tyre didn't move, but there was a sense of some of the aggressive tension draining away from him. John thought he saw Nolfi notice it too.

"And neither does it allow you to make policy," Nolfi continued, "with people from outside our borders, from another galaxy, and whom inhabit an ancient city that some believe should belong to those of _this_ galaxy. They are not the Ancestors returned, and though the work you and yours do for us all is vital, it does not equip you to decide on how everyone in our great Alliance should think and act. You are warriors, brilliant be it, not policy makers. Do not think to be what you are not."

John shifted his gaze to Fe-Rrara and then back to Tyre's profile.

"And pushing through on this treaty will _not_ bring you the extra military gain you wish," Nolfi added.

"By which you mean having an ally whom can attack the Wraith from behind as we attack the front? An ally who has weapons and ships, and viral science that might one day defeat the Wraith?" Fe-Rrara asked.

Nolfi' gaze slid from Tyre to her. "Are you able to think of anything other than the military perspective?"

"Are you able to think of a life without full military protection?" She replied. "A life with the Wraith returned to our stars?"

"Such a day will not come," Nolfi replied with a half smile, "Your warriors are too good."

"I'm sure that's what the Ancients thought too," Sumner remarked.

Nolfi glanced at him with a touch of bitterness. "The Ancestors had their own priorities, whilst we all are prepared to fight back the Wraith. In that your people and ours are alike, but considering that you are unable even to keep order in your own city..."

John literally bit the inside of his lip to hold in what he wanted to say to that! Like how the High Council had almost been taken over by Iketani, that they were corrupt and self-centred, but saying those things would only fire up an already tense situation. So he kept his mouth shut, which was something of an effort, but something Woolsey would be proud of. Maybe even Teyla too.

"We need to watch over our own priorities," Nolfi finished.

"Just like the Ancients did," Sumner noted, and Nolfi' expression soured again.

"Is that what we are to become, Councillor?" Fe-Rrara asked. "Self-centred and focused only on the present? What of future battles, our kin's future? Personal power is nothing over such concerns, and on this the Military Council will not back away."

Nolfi held her gaze. "You would put aliens from another galaxy over the opinions of your own government? Such a statement would be very distressing for all our people to hear."

"Perhaps our people would also be distressed to learn of how you and yours conducted yourselves here in Atlantis," Fe-Rrara replied. "For by our reckoning, since the Alliance delegation arrived in this city, we have brought with us an assassin, smugglers, and a drug dealer. Would not such worrying lack of security and potentially antagonistic bad manners be equally as concerning for our people? Unless it is that you wish to incite war with aliens from another galaxy in bringing such bad fortune to Atlantis upon your visit?"

"If you're looking for the higher ground in all this, Councillor," Tyre put in, "I would say that place currently belongs to Atlantis."

Nolfi frowned and John wanted to punch the air in support of military ambassadors.

"Those are very good points, Ambassadors," Sumner put in theatrically. "It makes us kind of wonder if we even want this treaty," he continued, looking directly at Nolfi, "when you can't even keep order among your own delegation." The Councillor's own words echoed back to him was another victorious moment. John wasn't usually one to rally behind the Colonel, but right now he was prepared to wave 'Sumner' support flags.

Silence hung heavy for a long moment, Nolfi' eyes narrowing as he took in the united front of the Military ambassadors and Sumner.

"You choose to push on this," Nolfi said to Tyre and Fe-Rrara, "and there will be consequences."

"In that we will have a new powerful ally, access to new knowledge and technology, support in battles and sharing of intelligence?" Fe-Rrara asked. "I imagine that you, Councillor, would be very highly regarded by your own people on Rosenthal in securing such a treaty for the Alliance."

John saw the shift in Nolfi' expression as he considered that new angle.

"A treaty that the Elite and Military Council will support wholeheartedly," Fe-Rrara continued, "and publically."

Nolfi pulled back slightly, his expression closing into calculation. Behind him, Edyis frowned thoughtfully.

"The trading terms in the treaty are not acceptable," Nolfi replied abruptly.

"Those details can be finalised by our ambassadors," Sumner countered immediately.

John could hardly believe the sudden turnaround.

"We will agree in the treaty that our approach to the inclusion of new worlds is to be altered," Fe-Rrara added.

"This treaty cannot alter Alliance policy," Nolfi responded.

"But, it can push the issue to be discussed in the next meeting of the High Council," Tyre replied. "Which is tomorrow I believe."

"And in return for my agreeing to support this?" Nolfi asked them openly, the aggression almost entirely gone.

"What is it that you want in return?" Fe-Rrara asked.

John could have sworn he saw Nolfi' eyes widen in powerful delight. "The Rosenthal Forward-Most Construction Corporation has rights for six new designs for ships, I want them put forward for consideration by the Elite," Nolfi replied. "And the assistant ruler of the sixth Satedan moon mining establishment has announced an offer of Political Marriage. I want her to marry someone of my choice, perhaps Edyis here."

Edyis' head snapped round in shock.

Tyre glanced at Edyis and huffed out a laugh. "If she'll take him."

"You will persuade her of the merits to strengthening the bond between Sateda and Rosenthal. We are both great powers within the Alliance, who have lost some of their former strong ties over the last generation."

Tyre considered that for a second. "It will be written into the marriage contract that he will have no legal power over the mining establishment, and no say in its future direction."

"Of course," Nolfi replied with an overly sweet smile.

John frowned at the almost unbelievable change in Nolfi. Suddenly he was onboard?

Nolfi turned to Sumner. "Then you will have your treaty, Colonel Sumner, and in return I expect that Rosenthal be considered for future trade with your people."

What the...?

"I'll talk to Colonel Carter for you," Sumner replied with some clear caution in his voice. John didn't blame him – what had just happened? Had they just won the treaty with threats, a fast-tracked ship design, and a political marriage?

"I will discuss this outcome with the others and see you all back around the negotiation tables in an hour," Nolfi announced. "I expect we can conclude the signing of this treaty quickly and efficiently today."

And with that simple statement, the High Councillor nodded, turned on the spot, and strode away. John watched him leave with his mouth hanging open. Which was almost the exact same expression Edyis was wearing for a beat before he realised he had been left behind. He snapped his mouth shut and hurried after his boss, whilst probably trying to think up a way of getting out of his spontaneous upcoming Political Marriage.

Nolfi and Edyis disappeared within seconds, leaving the corridors to their usual silent public flow, but John was still shocked.

"Just like that?" He asked in disbelief. "Days of negotiations and fighting, and he just turns like that?"

Tyre and Fe-Rrara both smiled at him, both clearly pleased that their plan to force the treaty with Nolfi had worked so well.

"Negotiations are much like battle," Fe-Rrara replied with a smile, "I am sure you're people are aware of the rule of using your opponent's momentum against them?"

John nodded.

"That can be applied to their intentions as much as their physical attack," Fe-Rrara replied. "Though the High Councillor is an ambassador of the High Council, he is still a voted representative of his own people, and that fact will always override the Council's leanings. Despite what he may have presented, Rosenthal is very positive about this treaty, for they are a militarily focused people. Garthew, his predecessor, knew that. Garthew was a strong advocate of making contact with Atlantis even in your earliest days in our galaxy."

John nodded with understanding. "So you used his true intentions, his momentum of looking out for his own people."

"It is their weakness," Fe-Rrara replied. "So we use it."

"Their momentum against them," John considered thoughtfully.

"Thank you for your assistance," Tyre stated with a rather smug smile.

"Best get this treaty sorted today," Sumner replied, less than politically.

"I suspect it will be arranged in record time now, Colonel Sumner," Fe-Rrara replied as she and Tyre inclined their heads in a parting nod.

John watched as the ambassadors turned and walked away, and shook his head again at what had just happened.

"Woolsey's not going to like this," he uttered thoughtfully.

"I don't give a damn what he thinks as long as he gets that treaty signed and these people out of our city," Sumner replied, not giving any sign that he was even pleased at what had just been achieved.

"Yes, Sir," John replied.

"Maybe then we can start moving out some of the east pier's residents too," the Colonel added as he passed John, clearly not one to dwell on the victorious moment.

"Yes, Sir," John replied again – his stock safe answer to the Colonel.

Sumner paused before he left though. "Good work this morning, Major," he said, shocking John.

Thrown by the sudden, unexpected, and rare appearance of a Sumner compliment, it took John a few seconds to reply. "Thank you, Sir."

Sumner nodded, his expression shifting a fraction that was almost close to a smile, before he turned and strode away.

Had John just stepped into an alternative reality where Sumner wasn't such a pain in the-

"Just don't mess things up now, Major. Get that treaty signed," Sumner said from down the corridor, righting the universe once more.

"Yes, Sir," John replied with a frown as he watched his superior's back disappear down the hallway.

He just hoped that Nolfi didn't change his mind between here and the auditorium. John looked down at his watch, estimating that he had been up an unfair number of hours now. He had barely any time to go catch and shower and change into a fresh uniform before heading up to the auditorium. No time for a nap, but maybe another strong coffee.

He just hoped Teyla was doing okay, and that maybe she might reappear in the city this afternoon. He might then even get the chance to spend a little time with her before the delegation all left. That would give him time to make sure she knew he was here for her if she needed him, that he understood the burden of losing a comrade-in-arms.

That she didn't have to isolate herself.

Because that was how it had felt on the Glisi world. The dark anger had been like a cloak wrapping around her, sealing her in.

Away from him.

Frowning at his overly dramatic thoughts, he shook his head. He was tired, that was all. She would be fine. The delegation would sign the treaty and leave, and they could all get back to normal. He would probably get to see her on Athos in a few days, and all would be fine.

He just hoped she was okay.

0000000  
TBC


	21. Sacrifice

**Chapter 21 – Sacrifice**

Night had fallen across the Training Facility, cloaking the funerary rise in a cocoon of black.

Overlooking the low hill, the wall of windows of the facility allowed only the lowest of artificial light out into the darkness, the dim illumination just enough to allow someone to see the tight press of the young recruits watching from the open windows. Every Elite in training had witnessed more than their fair share of funerary rites, for it was part of their education to see the reality of what it meant to be an Elite. To understand the sacrifice they all would one day meet. It was always a sobering time for Elite recruits, and their absolute silence from the many windows was testament to that fact as they watched the Elite gather at the foot of the funerary rise.

Many Elite had attended this evening, those who could be freed from battle and missions. Stood in semicircles around the base of the rise, Teyla's family of warriors had watched as the sunlight had faded and the depth of night had surrounded the wooden pyre set on the top of the rise. Generations of ash lay upon that peak, layers of sacrifice, bravery, and skill. And now Kari lay there, her withered body still contorted in her last moments of pain and defiance of her end. There were no coffins or death shrouds for an Elite warrior – they would not be hidden away in their final moments.

Words were spoken, words of ritual, of unity and purpose, and most especially honour.

Yet, Teyla did not hear them; she could only see the burning torch before her; the naked flames dancing against the darkness, searing blazing light against her retinas.

The words ended, slipping everything into silence.

There were no prayers to the Ancestors over the body of an Elite. The Ancestors had and continued to do nothing, while the Elite fought for all those left behind.

Fought with their bones, blood, and lives.

Sacrificed into the ash and memories of those watching.

The flames jumped in Teyla's vision as Oneakka moved forward, carrying the flaming torch up towards Kari' pyre. He moved solidly following his recovering sleep, and solemnly as he ascended the rise, all eyes upon him and Kari.

Teyla could still vividly remember the first time she had met Kari, right here at this facility in her first days of training. Kari had always been a strongly voiced woman, willing to express her opinion and ask questions that others might not dare to. She had been a powerful warrior, a strong determined backbone for everyone on the Sythus, and had taken down more than her fair share of Wraith. She would be a great loss to the Elite, to Teyla.

It seemed that more than ever now, that Teyla was attending funerals of those she had trained with herself. But, it was not her own sense of mortality that currently clawed at her insides as she watched Oneakka reach the burnt black ground saturated with ashes at the top of the rise.

He lowered the flaming torch to the base of the stacked wooden logs of the tall pyre and the flames caught instantly. The wood dry and ready-treated, spread the flames in a rush, surrounding the base of the wooden tower and rising up to surround Kari' body like a burning crown. With her remains so shrivelled from the Wraith feeding, she would not take long to burn away. Then her ashes would mix forever with those on the rise, except for a small ceremonial pot of her ashes that would be gathered and added to the wall inside the facility, where so many other tiny urns were set in the memorial wall.

Which was where Teyla's ashes would one day sit as well.

Perhaps where they should have been this day.

Oneakka, satisfied that the pyre would burn well, turned from the flames and moved back down the rise, the fire blazing behind him against the dark night beyond. Once he reached the base of the rise, he returned to his place stood beside Halling in the closest small semicircle to the pyre. Together, he and Halling were all who stood in that first row – the place where those who had fought beside the deceased in their last battle stood, whose backs Kari had protected, and who's lives she had saved by her sacrifice.

Which had included one who was not Elite, Robiah, who stood in Teyla's row behind Oneakka and Halling. Looking round at the Investigator, Teyla took in the haunted look to the man's eyes, the gaze of one replaying his own near end over and over, as he stared up at the burning pyre. She suspected the man would never be the same again, that what he had faced would change him, which would be for the better in her opinion.

And then, stood at the far end of the semicircle there was another man, one of Kari' former slaves who had served her for most their lives. His eyes were locked upon the pyre, and in the flaming light Teyla saw tears thick in his eyes. Kari had officially freed him, following the Elite's recent decision to officially set aside the use of slaves, but he had remained with Kari. Watching as tears began to roll down his cheeks, Teyla wondered if perhaps the role of slave had never actually existed for him, that perhaps he and Kari had shared more than anyone had realised.

Yet, thinking of such a thing was too painful and close to the mark for Teyla right now, and she snapped her gaze away from the man's grief. The anger and recrimination surged back up through her as she locked her eyes on the rising smoke and the tips of the flames reaching up into the night.

Torment, as hot as fire and as cold as pain, ravaged through Teyla, reaching up from her chest to fill her throat. Guilt tightened her lungs and thundered up into her head.

She knew she would never forgive herself for not having been there.

For having chosen the path of sensation and pleasure, whilst her fellow warriors had stepped out into cold snow and a deadly trap. She had betrayed them in that choice, had betrayed Kari and the Elite; for when she had been needed, she had been lost in self-interest.

Kari was dead because of that choice, because of her.

Had she been there on the Glisi world with them, she would have sensed the dark hidden presence of the Wraith, felt the twisted plotting Queen in her nest in the base under the snow. There would have been no trap to spring except perhaps for the Elite to have surprised the Wraith in turn.

Instead, Kari was dead, and Oneakka and Halling had barely survived. If it had not been for the actions of Seeal, a woman who had lived a dishonourable life until that point, all three of the Elite would be up upon that pyre now.

That Teyla had arrived in time to help Oneakka and Halling, was all that had allowed her to feel worthy enough to be stood here to witness Kari' funerary rites.

She should have been there. She should have remained with the Elite, not used every excuse to return to John's arms.

She had been seduced by her own heart, in wishing for a life that she knew she could not have. A life every recruit watching from the windows knew had to be abandoned, for the Elite set aside all personal desires for the greater good of their mission.

And she had betrayed that code, and Kari was burning for that error.

Teyla had never felt so horrid, so lost, or so dishonourable.

There was nothing she could do to change that mistake, except to stand here and watch Kari burn, her warrior's spirit ascending to the next life. At least in that act, Teyla could honour Kari one last time.

And to swear by her stretched remaining honour, that she would never again lose her away, to stray from her true path. She was an Elite and as such her life was dedicated to that warrior's path of service to the Alliance. She had forgotten that, had hoped to indulge part of her that so clearly wished some freedom from the restraint of her Elite life, but she was stronger than that. She would not betray her people, her fellow warriors again, in fact she would strive harder than ever before for them all. She swore it, silently out into the darkness as the flames glowed, as Halling gathered ashes into a small urn, and as all the others moved away back inside to see the urn sealed into the wall.

Yet, she remained, her heart heavy, but her soul determined in the dark night.

It was only once her heart rate had slowed and the silence of the night registered, that she realised that another stood alone with her in the darkness watching the flames still crackling and spitting at the pyre.

Oneakka, stood silent and proud, paid honour to Kari with his vigil, as he so often did for those who had died at his side. Glancing round and up at him, Teyla looked at his proud strong profile. She saw no anger there, no obvious grief, but she knew it was there. It was there in the tension around his eyes, in the strongly held width of his shoulders that told her he would remain here all night, as he had done for others before.

Painfully she recalled that he had stood beside Massa all through the night in which Mera's remains had burned, supporting in silent strength their friend's absolute grief. And deep inside, Teyla wondered if perhaps something inside her was burning away too – that life she had entertained with John, those gentle touches and playful freedoms of pleasure.

She could not afford that anymore, could not allow herself to indulge, to imagine what her life might have been like if she could be with him. If she had fallen in love with him as desperately as she felt her heart wished to do, to choose a life in which they might have lived together, have fought beside one another, even walked the hallways of the ancient City of the Ancestors together. But it was not meant to be, for she was an Elite.

In that plain truth, she knew she had to let John go now, had to let that imagined life she could have had with him burn upon the pyre of the reality of her life, her mission, and her choice to serve her people above all else.

To make that sacrifice of herself.

And it was a painful sacrifice, tearing away inside her in the night, blurring her eyes with tears that she would not let roll down her cheeks. No one would see them out here, except for Oneakka and Kari' soul, and surely would only think them grief for Kari.

But they were so much more. They were tears for Kari' loss, for a love almost gained, and for the redemption she sought for her mistake.

0000000  
TBC


	22. Consequences

**Chapter 22 - Consequences**

The pale Elite cell was depressingly boring and quiet around Seeal. By her measure, a day and a night had passed since she had been put back in here following the return from her old home world.

Though, admittedly, it would probably be more accurate to say that she had walked willingly back into the cell. Feeling exhausted and empty, she had stumbled to the lone bunk in the cell and had slept one of the deepest sleeps of her life. Waking unknown hours later, she had felt refreshed, but the reality of her future had become unavoidably real.

By her choice to stay and help the Elite on her home world, she had set herself willing on the path to imprisonment.

Many would see her punishment as justified, and perhaps maybe she was beginning to believe it too. Her revelations back on her home world, while running for her life through the snow, had appeared to have let her conscience out of its former cage and solidly into power again. The stupid voice just wouldn't shut up now, whispering to her of so many past events that she now saw in a different light. Characters on Dreamstation who had behaved a certain way, and how she had handled them carefully but not as fully as others would have. As the Elite would have done.

By warning a murderer only and not imprisoning him, were you then in some way implicated if he then went and killed again?

But she hadn't wanted to get involved in the situations like that; she had just been station security. She hadn't cared what had happened before the individual had stepped onto Dreamstation or what had happened after they had left. Their lives off the station hadn't been her concern, or at least that was what she had told herself. The truth was that she had forced herself to ignore the little worried conscience deep inside that told her how evil a creature some of those station users had been. She hadn't wanted to look into their histories. She had just wanted to keep order in her station and be left alone.

That hadn't worked out so well though, because here she was in an Elite cell while probably most of those dangerous characters were roaming freely out there beyond the borders of the Alliance. She had to wonder many more traitors there were out there being assisted by those who turned a blind eye to what was clearly wrong.

Which was why she had decided that she would see through her side of her deal with the Elite, for then at least she would be able to use her wealth of information for some good. So she had asked her guard for a blank electronic pad, which he had finally supplied after some whispered discussion in his radio link, and she had set about filling the pad's memory with everything she could recall about Iketani. She had made a deal with Oneakka and if he hadn't lost his mind permanently to the effects of the Queen's drug, then at least she would know that she had seen through her word on this occasion.

And if in the future if she had the chance to escape Rosenthal capture, after serving some respectable time in payment for her misdeeds, then perhaps the Elite wouldn't really care to chase her.

Once the pad was full with as much as she could remember off the top of her head, she had passed the pad back to her guard in exchange for her late meal, and then had turned in to sleep.

Waking this morning, she had found her breakfast had included a large well-baked biscuit along with her usual rice-meal and tea, and there was another pad waiting for her. This one contained a vast array of images of people, suspects, for her to identify and annotate. She suspected they were from Robiah, since the images were mostly captures from live feeds and security software by her reckoning. Working through the pad had been a good distraction from boredom at least.

There was far more in her head that she could share than these images of course – illegal trading routes, connections between criminals, weapons dealing, drugs and power plays on various worlds from outside the Alliance. She toyed with the idea of sharing it all now, but that would take a lot of time, and perhaps it would be best to use it later to help her on Rosenthal. Maybe she could use it to soften her stay there, or perhaps reduce her sentence?

Sighing, Seeal reached down for the last of her tea. She had made the drink last as long as possible, watering it down frequently. She doubted she would be given real tea on Rosenthal.

She should have just escaped when she had had the chance.

Stupid conscience.

Movement outside the force-field drew her attention and she looked up from her pad to see Elite Emmagan step into view. The petite woman stood straight-backed, her shoulders settled but strong. She wore a dark brown coat that was buttoned tightly around her middle, fur lining the collar and ends of the long sleeves, and her two swords sheathed against her back. Seeal wondered if she slept with the swords on her.

With a gesture from the Elite, the guard lowered the force-field and Emmagan stepped forward into Seeal's cell.

For a moment, Seeal debated whether she should stand up, knowing it was the usual subservient way the Elite expected to be treated. She never bowed to anyone else's power over her, but in this situation and considering what had happened on her home world, she felt a little different about these warriors now.

Maybe standing was a sign of respect rather than subservience.

Only the moment was past and Emmagan was inside the cell, her eyes on Seeal with an intensity that almost felt like a threat.

There was something different about the woman today, something...colder? Seeal had heard the stories about the powerful warrior Emmagan for years. It was said that she had battled an entire Hive alone as a youth, that she had been the lone survivor of a planet-wide battle. Before yesterday, Seeal had always laughed at such stories. Today, she believed every word.

She had also previously scoffed at the power of the Elite, of their life choice to throw themselves against the Wraith and how that made them feel superior. Now she understood what it was that they risked each day, and it gave her an inkling of the level of training, stamina, and determination such a life must require.

And clearly, from the few Elite Seeal had now meet face to face, such a life really did breed physically, mentally, and emotionally unique warriors. The Elite were like vipers – slick with powerful muscle and sharp eyesight, able to strike with lethal speed and accuracy in an instant. Emmagan walked like that – like she was relaxed, but ready at any moment to react with deadly skill.

And her sharp assessing gaze was focused on Seeal. Seeal met the gaze, not so easily intimidated.

"Have you finished with the last of Robiah's images?" Emmagan asked, her voice very even as if she were tightly controlling herself. Seeal's attention shifted to the slight darkness under the warrior's eyes, the unnatural smoothness of her forehead, and the slight clenching of one hand. There was the faint scent of smoke and a cold night outside to the warrior. Emmagan might be attempting to appear calm, but something bothered her. The danger was if it was Seeal.

Seeal chose to break the direct eye contact to look down at the pad on her pad. She had no interest in pushing the female warrior right now. She felt raw inside herself this morning. "Not yet, there's a lot on it."

She set the pad aside, wondering if she would get the chance to finish it before she was sent to Rosenthal. Maybe that was why Emmagan was here.

Seeal looked back up at the warrior, meeting her dark eyes again.

Emmagan looked back at her for a long quiet moment. Seeal wondered how the infamous warrior saw her in turn. Probably as the disappointing scum that Oneakka had seen her as before.

She wished that didn't bother her now.

"The assassins who murdered Councillor Garthew on Athos," Emmagan began, "my home world, also targeted my family."

Thrown slightly by the subject, and by the annoying wince of guilt and fear it provoked, Seeal nodded silently before replying. "Robiah told me," she answered.

"So, you can appreciate that the matter of punishment of those involved is vitally important to me," Emmagan stated.

Seeal slid her attention briefly down to Emmagan tensed fist and back up to the woman's tense face. Was the tension due to controlled aggression directed towards Seeal or was it due to something else entirely?

"I can see that," Seeal confirmed.

Emmagan frowned slightly and her fist relaxed. She had realised that she was showing her inner stress. To ordinary people, Emmagan would have appeared simply calm and in control, but Seeal was good at reading people.

With what looked like a purposefully calming deep breath, the warrior continued. "Why did you not report Iketani' whereabouts plainly? Rather than quietly whisper her location in a way that would not be guaranteed to reach the right ears?"

Seeal considered her answer carefully. Normally a glib reply would be her standard response while she assessed how best to protect herself with her answer. "It wasn't my business, and...I had to protect myself," she admitted honestly. "I was working for Dreamstation. You may see the station and Creass as the lowest of the low, but both saved me at a time when I needed it, and I owe Creass that. Even if he is a complete idiot," she added.

Emmagan frowned faintly again. "Why serve such a man?" She asked as if she truly couldn't comprehend anything so stupid. It was a good question.

"Why serve the High Council when you know they're corrupt?" Seeal asked back.

"Not all in the High Council are that way."

"But many are," Seeal countered. "Creass knew about Iketani' involvement with the Council, he had hoped to benefit from it if she had gained power."

Emmagan's expression turned darker. "But she did not."

"No," Seeal replied, "fortunately."

"Dreamstation would have been granted new business and power by Iketani had she ruled behind the Council?"

"That's probably what Iketani promised Creass, but I wasn't party to that," Seeal replied. "I imagine most of those kinds of conversations were shared in bed between them."

Emmagan's expression twitched ever so slightly, her control slipping for a second as if Seeal had touched a raw nerve, but almost immediately the control snapped back into place.

"Creass _will_ be punished for that association," Emmagan stated, her tone cold and controlled.

Seeal sighed slightly, understanding the subtext to that point. "I've already explained that I won't tell you where he is. I owe him that." She glanced down at the pad beside her thigh. All those faces, all those people Creass had helped in turn. Was it really stupid of her to protect Creass now?

"Oneakka tells me that you were planning to leave Creass' organisation before we captured you."

Seeal lifted her eyes back up to Emmagan. She had spoken in the present tense about Oneakka – did that mean that he hadn't gone mad with the Wraith drug? If he was alright, then she felt a small amount of satisfaction to know that her rescue of the big lump of stubborn Elite male had worked. Maybe he owed her now? Perhaps he wouldn't follow through on his promise to hunt her down personally if she ever escaped her imprisonment.

Probably not.

Emmagan watched and waited with the patience of a predator.

"With the loss of Dreamstation, Creass has had to turn to other means to keep some power," Seeal replied carefully.

"Meaning instead of watching crimes happening around him from his lofty position controlling Dreamstation, he is now having to turn to crimes himself?" Emmagan asked.

Seeal nodded with a faint smile at the woman's summary. "Yes."

"And you do not wish to be involved with such things?" Emmagan's eyes bored into her and Seeal looked right back.

"Dreamstation was a job for me, nothing more. I kept order there, kept people from being killed and the station being set on fire. It was a roof over my head, food in my belly, and some purpose. For most of my life, I've had none of those things."

"And without Dreamstation, do you not continue in your work to protect Creass?"

"My role was security. Where he is now, he doesn't need me in the same way, and I didn't want to be tainted further by what he plans to do now to give himself food and purpose," Seeal replied carefully.

"And just like that, you cut your ties with the man who gave you a safe haven and your purposeful job?" Emmagan asked. Seeal was starting to get the feeling that this conversation had a purpose of its own for Emmagan.

"I'm grateful to Creass for what he did for me, but no one rules me. I choose where I go, and what I do." Seeal stated

"Yes, you did, until now," Emmagan replied pointedly.

Seeal stared back up at her. "No, I _choose_ to be here." The words felt powerful as she spoke them, as she claimed her future. "I could have escaped back on the Glisi world."

She didn't comment on what she had done instead of escaping, how she had thrown herself into battle against the Wraith, outnumbered and alone. She would not be seen to beg for a reduction in her sentence for that act, that would reduce the act itself and her power over her choice.

Besides, it probably wouldn't be the appropriate argument to use with an Elite, who threw themselves into battle against the Wraith on a daily basis.

"Why did you not escape?" Emmagan asked, surprising Seeal.

Seeal smiled up at the woman, rather liking her directness. However, the answer was not as simple as the question.

The honest answer was that she wanted to pay her dues now, even if the prospect of imprisonment was terrifying. She had fought for her freedom too many times, but here she was handing it over. She suspected that the Elite might have somehow started to brainwash with the idea of honour her during her stay.

Or maybe it was because she had seen them face unbelievable odds on the battlefield, had witnessed them put themselves between her and a violent end at the hands of Wraith. Even her, a criminal in their eyes, was worthy of protection. How could anyone not respect that? How could it not pull on something deep inside her that wished she was like that? And why she had gone back to help save three Elite against innumerable Wraith.

And perhaps in this choice, she was proving to them and to herself that she was ultimately redeemable in more than in just that act. Part of her cringed at such a thought, so pathetically needing of approval, yet it still rang true. Besides, not only had she helped save the stubborn powerful Oneakka from the Wraith, but then to offer herself up for punishment would just stick it to him.

And maybe thank him.

But, she wasn't going to admit any of that to Emmagan. "Someone had to do something," she replied honestly but simply.

Emmagan studied her in silence for a moment and then finally nodded thoughtfully. "It is a shame that you were lost to the life you lived as a child. Had you joined the military or even Enforcement, I imagine you would have had much to give."

Thrown by the unexpected compliment, Seeal could only blink. She then had a sudden inner imagining of herself in an Alliance uniform, following marching orders and applying her fighting skills against the Wraith. It was so different to her real life that it was almost funny. "I don't think I'm one to follow orders," she replied with a smile.

Emmagan smiled back, her mood suddenly far lighter. "Perhaps."

Silence filled the cell, but this time Seeal felt a little uncomfortable in it.

To think of a life she could have lived... She could easily have slipped into Alliance territory as a youth and signed up for the military, for it was known that they willing gave a home and training to orphans. She wondered why she had never thought to do that. Except the answer was obvious on thinking it through. She had escaped the threats and control of her home world, so there was no way she would have surrendered to the orders of others. There was nothing more she wanted in life than complete freedom - to make her own choices from moment to moment. A life in service would have seemed like the exact opposite.

Still, she had to wonder...

"I have spoken with my father, Leader Torren of the Athosian worlds," Emmagan stated, drawing Seeal's focus abruptly back to her. "And through him also former High Councillor Charin and my sister Zabetha, who were also targets of Iketani' assassination attempt. As equal parties in harm, they have voice over what happens to those to blame, and they all agree that there is no direct evidence that you were party to the assassination attempts."

Seeal blinked, thrown again by the sudden announcement and its possible implication. "And what does Rosenthal have to say about that?"

"The Elite have not yet informed them of your capture," Emmagan replied. "And I see no reason why we would now."

Seeal frowned. Did that mean...? "So...?"

"You are free to leave," Emmagan replied, stepping aside slightly so that the way out of the cell was available, the force-field still down.

Seeal frowned at the empty space, the promise of freedom whispering to her to run for it now before anyone changed their minds.

It couldn't be that simple, could it?

"Just like that?" She asked Emmagan doubtfully.

"Take the pad with you; we will expect you to return it to Robiah once you have completed it, as was our agreement."

"And Iketani?" Seeal asked. Oneakka had been so determined to get everything he needed on the traitor.

"The information you supplied on yesterday's pad is thorough and presents plenty of avenues for investigation," Emmagan replied with what sounded almost like approval. "If we have further questions, we will find you." Which sounded like a threat.

"And Rosenthal won't make a big deal about this?" Seeal found herself asking. She wasn't about to leave until she was certain she wasn't going to suddenly have a bounty on her head.

"We will simply inform them of the information you supplied as from an unnamed informant, nothing more."

That sounded okay, more than okay. Seeal stood up from her bunk, the pad in her hand. "So, I am entirely free to leave?" She checked.

"Yes," Emmagan replied simply.

"Why?" Seeal found herself asking.

Emmagan looked up at her, the difference in their heights in no way lessening the strong powerful presence of the Elite warrior.

"We value bravery above all things," Emmagan replied. "The Elite believe that one shows their true character in battle, and you showed yours yesterday. Perhaps to yourself as much as to us. Elite do not forget such acts."

"So, you're saving me from Rosenthal," Seeal asked, wondering if it meant she was now obligated to the Elite.

"Yes, and because I do believe that you are innocent of any involvement in the assassination attempts. I suspect that, if you wish, there might be work for you with Robiah," Emmagan said as she moved out of the cell.

Seeal frowned at her. "But I don't have to, do I?" She checked worriedly. Could this be the obligation part?

Emmagan smiled though as she paused outside the cell. "No," she replied. "It was just a friendly suggestion." And with that, she disappeared out of view, out of the brig, leaving Seeal in the cell with the force-field down.

Okay.

She was really free to go.

So what was she doing standing in here?

She strode forward across the cell and stepped over the lip of the force-field's border. The guard moved forward and held up a tray on which her timepiece, her lock picks, her knife, and her two pieces of tech sat.

"There is a transport craft leaving for a supply run soon down to the planet," he told her as she took her things. "The guard down the corridor will show you the way to the bay."

Seeal nodded as she slipped her knife back inside one boot and the two techs into the other. She wrapped her timepiece back around her wrist, which she noted had been properly put back together, and had to hold the lock picks as she had run out of hiding places. She would have to go over everything very thoroughly once she was away from the Elite, and she would have to do something about her boot heels, which no doubt had a tracking device inserted in them when the Elite had filled their compartments. She would need to have them replaced long before she returned to Lalwani, because she might be leaving Creass' organisation, but she wasn't about to lead the Elite to his doorstep.

She turned away from the guard and moved towards the exit, which also stood open. Her guide would be down the corridor, not that she needed directions to the Elite transporter bay, having been there and back a couple of times now.

She stepped out of the brig and into the corridor outside, and sure enough the guard was waiting a little way down by the bathrooms. However, movement to her left, had her looking down the other direction of the corridor.

Oneakka was stood leant against the wall, looking as relaxed and as indifferent as he normally was. He looked round with vague interest as if he hadn't been clearly waiting for her to emerge.

She turned to face him, her hands on her hips, feeling more empowered against him for the first time. He pushed away from the wall to stand facing her.

"Come to watch me slip out of your grasp?" She asked him as he filled the width of the corridor.

"Off to protect more criminals?" He asked in response.

She almost smiled.

"You appear fully recovered," she noted, which would be the only reference she would make to the fact that she had not only saved his life, but had helped him walk all the way to the Portal and through.

"Stronger than ever," he replied simply, making the point clear that he had not been weakened by the Wraith drug, and was once again his usual determined stubborn self no doubt.

"That is a shame," she responded with an exaggerated sad face.

"Tell Creass that we will find him soon," he replied, the threat full of real promise. She almost felt sorry for Creass, but not quite.

"I will tell him, perhaps as I am going out the door," she replied, and felt instantly annoyed at herself for having felt the need to make sure that he knew she was going to change her ways. What exactly she was going to do, she wasn't sure, but now more than ever she knew she had to get away from Creass.

"Will you tell me where he is then?" Oneakka asked angling his head slightly.

In the direct light of the corridor, his pale skin seemed almost like the fresh warmer snow of early morning. His features, strong and striking, even more so on the side without the scars and tattoos, were held in a strange expression. It felt something like amusement, but with something else she could not place.

She almost wished she could stay on the ship a little longer to speak with him, to engage as more of an equal and perhaps try to understand that strong Elite sense of purpose. She wished she was as determined, driven, and honourable as his people. She wondered what it was like to live like that.

However, she had her own noble ethics, and she still would not betray Creass, even if he was an idiot who was making all the wrong choices. She knew what it felt like to make the wrong decisions in life.

"No," she told Oneakka plainly. "Even I, criminal scum that I am, have my loyalties."

Oneakka nodded as if he wasn't surprised, and there was a definite touch of a smile as he did. It did nice things to his very blue eyes.

The humour didn't last long though. It faded back into his stoic seriousness of before.

He held her gaze strongly, once again the powerful Elite warrior. The set of his jaw was like stone, the darkness of his tattoos emphasised against his pale skin under the corridor's lighting.

"Walk away from him," he stated. "Your life is your own now." He meant it seriously, almost to the point of a threat. It satisfied her though to hear that he accepted her release, and to know that he would not be hunting her down in the future.

She found herself thinking about Emmagan's point earlier, that in a different life perhaps she could have lived differently. She wondered if she could even have worked for the Elite, been one of their workers, fighting the Wraith, flying the most advanced ships. She might have liked that life.

But, it wasn't meant to be.

"It's yours to control," Oneakka continued seriously. "And I suggest, now that you can fly free, that you make some better choices with your life, Raven."

Surprised, not only at the advice, seemingly honestly and meaningfully given, but also by the nickname and how it called back to their exchange back on her home world. Strangely, this intimidating and powerful Elite warrior, seemed to understand her all too well.

Another faint smile crossed his scarred and noble face before he turned and strode away.

Away down the corridor and out of her life.

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TBC


	23. Support in the Changes

**Note:** Hello everyone, thank you all so much for your support with this fic. There are only 3 more chapters to go after this one and many of you have been asking about a sequel already, which I can confirm will definitely happen. This is essentially Act One of a larger story, as I have SUCH plans for all these characters :) Thanks again everyone, and happy summer. Wedj x

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**Chapter 23 – Support in the Changes**

Winter was moving in fast on Athos, its chill sharp and enlivening against Teyla's skin as she stood in the doorway to the family courtyard. The sun was low in the late afternoon sky, casting half the courtyard in bright golden light and the other half in cool shade. Frost was already forming in those shady areas, adding a sparkle to the weakening flowers and shrubs. She suspected in only a few weeks the true deep cold would arrive and the first snow would fall.

At the edge of the closest central reflection pool, a small tipper bird was bouncing tiny steps around the rim of the pool. She watched its progress towards where a thin green stem laid against the pool's lip, caught in the first touches of frost, providing the tiny bird with an easy meal. It pecked at the stem, dancing its little feet around to prevent being caught itself in the frost.

The silence of home was gentle and peaceful for Teyla, calming her soul and providing her with the recuperation Athos always brought her. She needed that succour now, for with the last reports filed and the last debrief completed, she had been left with only her own troubled and intense thoughts as her company. With the Sythus in dry dock over the Training Facility for vital engineering work, and the news having arrived that yesterday the treaty had been signed with Atlantis, she was not currently needed anywhere.

But the Elite were.

After her experiences on Atlantis, stood listening to the petty squabbles and time wasting of the ambassadors and High Council representatives, she had seen more than ever how true Father had been about the cracks forming within the Alliance. Unity was at risk, not from violence outside the borders, but from within. From selfish needs and greed. She had always known of those weaknesses, but only recently had she herself fallen prey to them. She had put her own desires over the greater good, she had focused on what she wished over her duty, and those in power in the Alliance were doing the same.

The Queen killed by Seeal had clearly understood that weakness of humanity all too well. Using Quantum to manipulate and attempt defeat of the Alliance was a shocking new approach for the Wraith, but fortunately thwarted for now. As long as another Queen had not been involved in the new drug production... Oneakka had been convinced that the Queen had been working alone though, that she had been motivated only by her own selfish desire for power over the other hives as much as over the galaxy's human populations.

And towards that end, the Queen had disguised at least two of her warrior Wraith as humans, successfully enough to have fooled plenty of people. To think that there might be others out there currently hiding in plain sight, perhaps even walking around free on Alliance worlds...it was very disturbing.

Teyla had to wonder if perhaps the Wraith were even manipulating the wrong people in the right places of power?

Either way, this new threat had to be met by the Elite. Teyla planned to propose to her fellow warriors that the Elite begin to play a larger role within the Alliance, not just battling at its borders. There were a large number of Elite veterans who had been significantly injured in battle to prevent them returning to the front line, and other than taking on duties in the Training Facility, there was little else for them to do. If they could be formed into new divisions linking the Elite with the Investigation Division and Enforcement, and perhaps the Elite could visit each Alliance planet for inspections of their security. She also thought it would be wise that there be an Elite presence on Aria, the government planet of the High Council, including a Seeker to ensure that no disguised Wraith were able to infiltrate the highest seat of power of the Alliance.

The High Council would not like that, for they would see even a small Elite station on Aria as a threat to their power. The Military Council had already been forced to push through the treaty with Atlantis, which would likely cause repercussions with the High Council, but more clearly needed to be done.

Si had told Teyla that she was different from most Elite, that she looked forward, seeking unity for the entire galaxy. At the time, she had been shocked by his suggestion, only then to admit to herself how accurate he had been. However, she now realised that perhaps his warning was more significant than he had realised. In looking outward and to the future, she had neglected her people's present. The treaty signed with Atlantis, it was time to focus on home, on keeping the Alliance unified. Father had spoken of the cracks forming between the strong alliances within their borders, and she had now seen for herself how those divisions were affecting those in power and the vital political decisions they were making for everyone. The treaty with Atlantis should have been easy and simple, but it had not been. If the High Council could not support such a simple proposition, what would happen with the more complicated internal decisions? How big were these cracks and would they ultimately lead the Alliance to pull itself apart?

The thought of a ruptured Alliance frightened her. For without the cohesion of the Alliance, the Wraith would undoubtedly force their way back into a wider foothold in this galaxy. She could not allow that. So, it was time that she put her own desires and wishful thoughts aside and focus on what she could do _now_, in the here-and-now for her people, for the Elite, and for the Alliance as a whole. Her suggestions for a greater role for the Elite was only part of that aim, for there was more she could personally do, but she would need to discuss the matter with Father first.

Across the courtyard there was an explosion of shrubbery as Ketra burst out of a flowerbed, bright flower pollen smeared across her nose. Teyla smiled towards the far side of the courtyard, her mind willingly turning away from political and serious matters, as she realised that the sun had almost entirely disappeared behind the buildings of Tjaru. Bubbles of delight, and a loud sneeze, allowed Teyla to track her pet's progress around the reflection pools as Ketra headed towards her. The tipper bird, frightened by the dragon's sudden exuberant arrival, flew off in a loud flapping of wings. Ketra paused in her steps to watch the bird with predatory interest, but continued on towards Teyla, shaking pieces of leaves from her ears.

Teyla smiled as she reached down with both hands to stroke across Ketra's warm smooth alien skin as the dragon arrived at her side. She had missed Ketra's company, and clearly Ketra had missed her access to the flowers.

Grinning down at the bright pollen coated nose, Teyla scratched around one soft pointed ear. "Have you had your fill of flowers?" She asked.

Ketra looked up at her slightly nervously, or was it with a look of concern perhaps?

"All is well," she found herself assuring Ketra as she stroked a hand over the smooth peak of her head and back around one ear.

But all was not well, not really. Her serious plans for the future could not distract her from the emotions that still lingered sharply in her chest over these past days. Not only had Kari' death filled her thoughts, but John even more so.

She had barely slept, having spent most of the restless night-time hours thinking of him, debating how best to handle the situation. It was very clear to her now that he had far too strong a hold over her thoughts and feelings to be safe. Her logical mind told her it would be best to simply cut all ties; to return to their former official relationship only.

Yet, despite the mistake she had made, the error that had led to the loss of Kari, Teyla still missed him. Her heart still yearned to be with him, to see him again, to ensure he was well. Clearly, he was dangerous for her. The power of her reaction to not having seen him these last two days told her that plainly enough.

He would wonder why she had not returned to Atlantis, and why she would not be here on Athos when Atlantis next attended their routine visit.

He would know the instant he next saw her that something had changed for her.

That their 'brief' affair now had to end.

She predicted with near certainty that he would not simply agree to that. He would fight to keep their connection closer, to maintain some of their intimacy. For, despite their mutual agreement in the past to keep their affair short and with no promises to any future, the truth was that the length of time they had been spending together had forged a tighter bond than either of them had likely predicted.

He would not allow that to be broken so easily, for it was not in his nature to do so.

What concerned her was that she feared she would not be able to mount a defence against his charms.

So, she had stayed away, and perhaps should continue to do so. Yet, it was not in her nature to run from anything, to surrender to fear, or to anyone else's will. But, the danger was that part of her longed to be held in his arms again, to hear sweet promising words. But, it could not be, and so she had to keep away, had to focus on the future. Now without him a part of it.

For her life was about to change in such a way that would likely affect him significantly. So, it was best to keep away, to break ties, and move on.

If only she would stop thinking about him, that her heart didn't ache so heavily

A soft questioning bubble and a brushing caress from Ketra's head against Teyla's leg drew her attention back to the present with a rush. She looked down at Ketra to find the dragon's orange eyes studying her closely, almost worriedly. How lost in her concerns was she that Ketra could read them so plainly in her face? She would need greater control in the days to come.

So, she should best focus on why it was she was here.

"Let us go into the warmth," she suggested to Ketra as she stepped back in the doorway. Ketra bubbled a response and slipped her muscular lithe body past Teyla's leg into the warmth of the Governing Building. As Teyla closed the door, she spied the tipper bird had returned to its chilled stem, its tiny feet dancing around even faster now to prevent frostbite.

The door closed, Teyla headed towards the far end of the complex, heading towards the family areas, Ketra leading the way. She was far better behaved now that before, yet one staff member, who was passing with a loaded tray, clearly pressed herself closer to the wall as she passed Ketra. Yet, she still smiled down at the lizard and then nodded respectfully to Teyla. Teyla returned the nod. She suspected the cups and covered food on the tray were intended for one of the two large meetings that were still ongoing in the complex. Father and Zabetha were chairing one each, and had been discussing it in great depth the day Teyla had last been here. Neither of them knew she was back now, and she had not planned how long she might stay. Perhaps just the night, after she had spoken with Father.

Up ahead, Ketra paused in the junction and her long neck raised with interest focused down the hallway to the right. A bright bubble of delight burst from Ketra as she disappeared from Teyla's view.

"Hello Ketra," Charin's soft voice echoed from the direction Ketra had vanished and Teyla relaxed. "How beautiful you are growing," Charin praised and Teyla could hear Ketra's bubbles in response.

Finding a proper smile for the first time in many days, Teyla reached the junction and looked to the right to see Charin stood outside the open door to Father's office, Ketra leaning her head into Charin's elderly caring hands.

"Such a good girl," Charin said softly as she stroked Ketra's cheeks and Ketra let out a bubbling purr.

Still smiling, Teyla headed towards them and Charin looked up with a smile. Teyla noted instantly that Charin had a good flush of colour to her cheeks. Since she had retired from her High Council duties, her health had stabilised and along with the heart operation she had received last year, she was looking well. Teyla told her so as she reached Ketra's side.

"It is nice of you to lie to an old woman," Charin replied as she set her hands on Teyla's shoulders.

Teyla gently placed her hands on Charin's narrow shoulders and they touched foreheads.

It was a touch that Teyla had shared with Charin for so many years that she could not remember a time in her life without Charin. She was the grandmother she and Zabetha had never been able to enjoy. Feeling Charin's wise hands on her shoulders, filled with a lifetime of love and support, Teyla felt a rush of her worries again, as if Charin's presence urged them to be confessed, as had so often been the case when she was a child.

"Is everything alright?" Charin asked as they lowered their hands from each other. How typical that Charin would sense the truth in her so easily.

"It has been a difficult few days," Teyla replied.

Charin's eyes studied hers with far too much insight. "I was having some tea with your father before he had to return to his meeting. I have a fresh pot brewing if you wish to join me."

Teyla wondered if news of her arrival had reached Charin's ears some time ago and that was why the pot of tea had been supplied. Or it could simply be that Charin had been enjoying reading quietly in Father's office, as she had frequently been doing of late. She said she missed Father's company, and Teyla suspected she was still somewhat involved in discussing political matters with Father.

"I am waiting to speak with him," Teyla considered out loud, "and I am always happy to share tea with you."

Charin smiled and moved back into Father's office. "Then allow an elderly woman to keep you company while you wait, though it could be some time I warn you." Teyla followed her into the office, aware that she was being led into a situation where Charin would wish to learn what was troubling her. With Charin, there was something so nurturing from Teyla's childhood linked with her, that Teyla had no chance but to confess her feelings to her. She imagined it was a feeling that most people had with their mothers, but Teyla did not have enough clear memories of her own mother to know. Charin had filled the role, being both mother and grandmother to her and Zabetha.

As she moved towards the spare chair beside Charin's seat, the steam rising from the pot of freshly brewed tea, Teyla found herself thinking of Seeal. She found it hard to imagine how it had been to be rejected by your people, to have to run from death at their hands, your mother not defending you, at the age of seven. When she had heard Seeal's story, Teyla had felt renewed gratitude for her own supportive family, of which Charin was a major part.

Charin picked up the tea pot to fill a spare cup before Teyla could do so first. Charin did not easily succumb to restrictions of being elderly. Teyla took the cup with a reprimanding look, but it had been clear that someone had made sure the teapot was not overly filled so that Charin could lift it safely.

Ketra, having walked around the office, sniffing things and leaving a few noticeable smudges of red pollen across several shelves, moved across to the space beside Teyla's feet and settled down. She laid partly curled up, her side against Teyla's foot and ankle.

"I heard about Honoured Elite Kari," Charin said softly as she settled back in her chair.

Teyla nodded as she picked up her tea and inhaled the scent. It was one of her favourites, and she wondered if that was a coincidence. "She will be a great loss."

"Though I heard a victory was won," Charin added.

Teyla looked at her with a faint frown. "You still have strong contacts to have heard so soon."

Charin smiled, but it was with an edge that said she was aware that Teyla was stalling.

Teyla snipped some of her tea and set the cup down on the small table between their knees. She looked off to the far end of the office where the wall of glass looked out to Father's small personal courtyard. Long branches were hanging low with the last of the winter blossoms.

"I have made a mistake, Charin," she said softly, her focus remaining on the courtyard outside, Charin in the side of her line of sight.

Charin remained quiet, waiting, understanding.

"I should have been there at the battle from the start. Kari is dead because I put my own interests above my duties."

Charin's head moved slightly in the side of Teyla's vision. "It is my understanding, and to most, that Elite unfortunately frequently do die in battle."

Teyla nodded.

"You cannot know how a battle would have gone with you there."

"I do," Teyla replied. "They did not have working sensors on that world and so they did not know the Wraith were there, and certainly not in such large numbers." Teyla didn't have to explain more. Charin knew about her gift, that Teyla would have sensed the Wraith, and the Hive, the minute they had arrived on the Glisi world. They would have called for backup, waited for Atlantis' ship.

"Seeker numbers are relatively low throughout the galaxy, I imagine it is rare that all Elite missions have a Seeker among them," Charin logically argued for Teyla.

"True, but I should have been on that mission. I chose to go to Atlantis instead."

"I heard that they were a decisive factor in the victory you gained."

Teyla nodded, her elbow on the softly padded arm of the chair, her chin resting on the end knuckles of her longest fingers as she kept her eyes on the courtyard. At her feet, Ketra moved, brushing her body against Teyla's legs as if in comfort. Without thinking, Teyla reached down with her free hand and stroked Ketra's head.

"Atlantis could have been called in as needed; I did not need to be there. I wanted to be there though," she softly confessed. She would tell no one else this. Only in another woman who was so understanding and loving, could Teyla feel safe to talk of this truth.

"Why did you want to be there?" Charin asked.

Teyla smiled grimly and finally looked at Charin directly.

Charin nodded with understanding. "Major Sheppard."

Teyla felt a flush embarrassment and warmth in her cheeks, but she nodded against her fingers.

Charin reached forward for her tea, and sat back again with it held in both her hands. "Men, they are equally our most wonderful delight and our greatest weakness."

Teyla smiled at the wistful and wise tone Charin used, as well as the twinkle in the elder woman's eyes that made Teyla wonder what youthful memories she was recalling. But, this had been a serious error and she looked down and away, not wanting to slip into the softer feelings of such things.

"I put my personal desires in front of my work, my duty. Kari was killed and we almost lost Oneakka and Halling with her."

"Three Elite," Charin noted. "I have no doubt you have gone on missions just as risky with fewer fellow Elite with you."

Teyla had to agree with that.

"You were in Atlantis on the days before the mission, you were communicating with them, organising the support you took with you to save Honoured Elites Oneakka and Halling."

Teyla smiled faintly at Charin's attempt to make excuses for her.

"But, I wanted to go back. I wanted to return to John's arms," she admitted.

Charin looked back at her. "There is nothing wrong with enjoying a man's company, even if you are an Elite. I know you, if you felt you were needed for certain, you would have been there with them. You cannot be on every mission, Teyla. You are not expected to be perfect all the time."

"But that is what Elite must strive for," Teyla argued gently. "We have to be the best there is, to put aside emotional links, for they do alter our focus."

Charin frowned. "Even Elite fall in love."

Teyla glanced away at that. "Some may, but few." She looked back to Charin. "I allowed the indulgence of enjoying being with John to distract me. I had believed that I could enjoy both together, enjoyment of him _and_ my work, but I was wrong."

Charin frowned deeper. "Elite have lovers, such connections cannot entirely be eliminated from life. Even such powerful warriors as the Elite need someone to share the night with."

Teyla smiled softly, aware that she had never had such an open discussion on this subject matter with Charin before. It felt freeing, it made her feel oddly more equal with Charin, who she had always placed on a high pedestal. She imagined this was a conversation most women had with their mothers. She was glad that Charin was here to fill the role for her today, to be the voice of a wise woman who understood the truths of living.

"Do not surrender such things out of fear, Teyla," Charin warned. "If you do, then it will have won over you, rather than you over it. As women we have to learn to temper our hearts, and I promise you all Elite women will be doing the same. Life is the greatest of all challenges, and I know you are not one to walk away from any challenge."

It was one of the nicest compliments to an Elite warrior, but especially so from Charin.

"You saw something in Major Sheppard, felt a connection with him, which perhaps I might say, represents something you have sought," Charin continued.

She was right, for in John she had found someone to be entirely relaxed with, to laugh and enjoy her femininity like never before.

"Do not so easily walk away from such feelings, Teyla," Charin warned.

Teyla was a little surprised by Charin's continued insistence. "It was never going to be a long lasting affair; we were both aware of that."

"Of course," Charin replied. "You are an Elite and he is from another world, another galaxy," she smiled. "How typical of you to find a lover so unusual."

Teyla smiled bemused at her. "Si told me recently that I am not like other Elite, that I think more like Father. That I want to bring unity to the galaxy."

"That is what many of us equally strive for," Charin agreed. "There is no shame in that."

"I know," Teyla replied. "But it is unusual for Elite, who focus on battle and defeat of the Wraith only. Most would not care what happens once the Wraith are gone."

"But you think about it," Charin replied with what appeared to be a very approving smile. "It is why they appointed you one of the Elite to serve in the Military Council is it not?"

It was likely true enough. "Si implied to me that I have been pushing to form ties with Atlantis."

"And you see your affair with Major Sheppard as part of that urge to unify?" Charin said with a teasing smile.

Feeling a touch of warmth to her cheeks again at the subtle joke, Teyla had to nod. "He is a fascinating man, unlike most men I have met and worked with before. And in being with him I have learnt more about myself. Including my weaknesses," Teyla considered as she lowered her gaze to Ketra, who had her long neck extended up, the back of her head against Teyla's lap, her orange eyes watching Teyla with what looked like honest concern. Teyla scratched under Ketra's chin, which softened the dragon's apparent worry.

"But also your strengths," Charin replied. "Honoured Elite Si was right that you are different, and I believe that to be a strength. Look at what you have achieved in the Military Council and in playing your part in working with Atlantis. The non-aggression treaty will, I have no doubt, begin a rush of trade with Atlantis, and likely with non-Alliance worlds through them. This can change much, and you have been a part of that."

"But more needs to be done," Teyla returned. "I see how much now, having stood watch over the negotiations for the treaty with Atlantis. The lack of unity among even the oldest members of the Alliance."

Charin sighed as she sipped some of her tea. "It is a continuing concern, and one your father continues to feel the most vital point for our future."

"And I believe that there are ways we can help, that _I_ can help with that," Teyla told her. "I have some ideas I will be presenting to the Elite and the Military Council, as well as to Father."

Charin looked very interested, but Teyla was not yet ready to voice the ideas yet to anyone outside the Elite. "And some things that I personally could do to help unity," Teyla added. "In my own small way."

Charin frowned slightly, but again Teyla was not ready to discuss that subject just yet. She suspected Charin would not agree with her, especially after this discussion. Teyla would speak with Father first.

"I appreciate your words," Teyla told her. "For hearing my troubles."

Charin smiled, but Teyla could see an edge of concern still in her expression. "I am always here for you to speak with, Teyla. Frankly so, as a woman of my advanced years is able."

Teyla smiled at her, while silently praying that Charin had many more years in her.

Teyla feared the day when she would no longer have the mother and grandmother figure that Charin had always been. But, at least Teyla had had that love and support for now.

She had no doubt that it had helped form her into the woman she was today. And, in following Charin and Father's direction, it was time Teyla started to be more proactive in her own life.

As difficult as it might turn out to be in certain circumstances.

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TBC


	24. New Direction

**Part**: 24/26  
**Note:** Oops sorry for delayed posting – I have been enjoying the glorious heat wave that's hit the UK. Had friends visit and visited family myself – been a lovely time, but sorry for the delay. Only three chapters left, so here we go...

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**Chapter 24 – New Direction**

Freedom felt good.

Sat outside in the fresh air, the sun on her face and the breeze dancing through her hair, Seeal felt very good.

For the first time in days, she had proper food in her belly and free will once again. She had even splashed out on an indulgent steamed spice berry pudding with kita sauce to finish her meal. No more tasteless rice-meal, no more threatening promise of a cell in Rosenthal, no more worries about Ulfur prowling in the back of her mind - instead she felt blissfully light and happy.

It had been some time since she had felt happy. A very very long time.

Her life really was her own now; she had no more obligations, no lingering guilt or overhanging threats.

She could do anything she wanted.

Which had started at the moment of her release from the Elite. She had gone through five Portal trips, following traders and families through wormholes to random planets to set up a winding irrational trail should the Elite be tracking her. There may have been tracer chemicals on her clothes, but a simple full change of clothes from one of her secret stashes, and a thorough cleaning of her knife, timepiece, lock picks and tech pieces, ensured she could not be followed. Well, except for the obvious locator hidden in one of her boot heels, but right now a shoemaker was installing new hollow heels on her well worn comfortable boots, so that was also solved. Whatever the Elite had used to fill in the heel compartments had fixed solidly like rock, forcing the shoemaker to strip away some of the underside of the boots' soles to remove them. The heels separated, she had held them in her hands and been seriously impressed by their equal weighting that the Elite had ensured to conceal the locator's presence. But, it would be to no avail. She had buried the heels in a corner of a nearby farmer's hog beast pen, so if the Elite did follow the locator all they would find would be the hog beasts.

Rather pleased with herself, she had set out, in a cheap pair of sandals purchased from the shoemaker, to this tavern for her first proper meal whilst she waited for her boots to be finished. And the food had tasted wonderful. The sun felt wonderful and the true sense of freedom had settled fully upon her.

She was taking her time eating her pudding too, savouring each mouthful, enjoying the mix of spicy and sweet flavours on top of the stodgy fullness of the pudding. It had been a long time since she had allowed herself something like this, something purely indulgent and somewhat expensive. Price was not an issue for her for now, considering the amount of physical currency she had accrued over the years from all her saved wages in Dreamstation. The small amount she had collected along with the change of clothes in her stash was still enough to buy her a hundred meals like this on this market planet. A tall mug of local flowerbean sweet tea steaming beside her had been another treat with her meal, and which she savoured along with her pudding.

Freedom felt wonderful.

She hadn't realised how trapped she had felt before now, how limited she had been by circumstances and the pressures of her past and future. Now, all that had changed.

Her future really was her own.

Scooping up the very last of the pudding's sauce, she licked the spoon clean and set the bowl aside. She picked up the mug of flowerbean tea and inhaled the fragrant steam rising from it as she closed her eyes. The sun in her face, glowing warm and satisfying, she sighed happily.

Once her boots were ready, all she had to do was return to Lalwani and remove her things, and herself, from Creass' organisation. She had no doubt that he would object, but that wouldn't be a problem.

And after that...

She opened her eyes to the sunlight.

What was she going to do after leaving Lalwani?

The feeling of blissful happiness began to edge aside slightly, allowing forward a new concerning realisation...

She had no idea what she was going to do. Freedom was wonderful, but was she _actually_ going to do now?

She had unlimited choices before her, but what did that mean practically for her? Where could she live? Which planet? With what kind of people? What could she do with her life?

Over the years she had obviously considered what she might do if anything had happened to Creass or if she had needed to disappear. Most of those options had involved using contacts she already knew, who could put her in the direction of those who could use her skills and provide some possible protection against Creass' enemies. But, that wasn't a consideration anymore now she had decided to no longer associate herself with such criminal contacts. Besides, she knew what the price would be to go to such people for protection – she had seen it happen to far too many men, but mostly women. They looked out for themselves by associating themselves with those in power, giving of their own lives and bodies in payment for that 'protection'. Seeal was never going to live a life like that. She would rather live on a mountainside alone by herself.

However, that said, she also knew she couldn't just live in a house in the middle of nowhere, or as some passing hand on a farm. She would go mad in such a life. She was a woman of action, and sitting alone in a hut was not going to give her the worthwhile life she now craved.

Besides, she knew what was out there for real now. The Wraith had always been a part of her life, as they were in everyone's life in this galaxy, yet she had not truly understood the real threat of the evil creatures. Standing in a freezing forest watching a literal army of Wraith rushing towards her, would be a memory she would never forget. In fact, she suspected it would haunt her for the rest of her days. Living alone, isolated and away from any conviction risk would not stop the promise of a probable culling. The Wraith were out there and in order to protect herself, she needed to be in Alliance territory. More than ever now, did she appreciate what the Alliance offered its people.

However, as far as any legal system in the Alliance was concerned, she was criminally associated. The Elite might have wiped things clean in regards to her being involved with the assassination of the High Councillor Garthew, but she was still 'guilty' in many eyes in the Alliance.

What she needed, as Ulfur had asked for himself, was a clean slate. Then she could move freely where she wanted within the Alliance, away from the Wraith threat, and away from the scum she had spent most of her life involved with beyond the borders.

The most obvious answer to that was to take up what Elite Emmagan had suggested – that Robiah would have work for her in the Investigation Division. The amount of knowledge she had gathered over the years would likely make the weaselly Investigator wet himself, but she would rather go the rest of her life without having to see that man again. She didn't trust him as far as she could throw him, and, despite the irony of it, she felt somewhat defensive of whom she gave her information to now. And she had a lot of it to give – smuggling routes, weapons dealing, drug dealing connections, illegal shipping, political manipulation through trade, prostitution organisations, slavery links, gambling debts and murders. She had no doubt that the Investigation Division would welcome all she knew, but _they_ also wouldn't trust her as far as they could throw her. It was likely they would essentially chain her to a desk and bleed all her experience and knowledge out of her over years to come, with the threat of imprisonment if she chose to leave. They would then use what she gave them to their own means, likely using it to manipulate scum for 'the greater good' as Robiah would say. They might even try to force her to go out beyond the border as an informant as Ulfur had done.

She didn't want that life. There would be no difference between being the Division's slave and being a kept woman by some powerful drug-lord on some back-water planet. Her future was her own and she wasn't about to walk back into criminality. So, she needed to negotiate her way to helping, to providing her information. It needed to be on her terms, but she had no faith at all in Robiah to keep to any bargains, or to use her information in the right way.

What she needed to do was find someone she could trust, and start from there.

She sat in the lowering sunlight for a further half an hour before she admitted to herself who that was. There was no guarantee that she would even be listened to, but out of all her options, it felt the best one. The one she could get behind, and feel in the strongest position. Some might think her stupid, but at least this way she would be offering her knowledge and experience in a way that might help out the right people in the Alliance and ensure a safe future for herself in Alliance territory.

Her decision made, she stood up from her tavern table and strode back to the shoemaker with determination now filling her. In her mind, she prepared her arguments, her offer and request for somewhere to stay. And it felt right, it felt like the right choice, even if she ended up being pushed to the Investigation Division, at least it would be on her own terms this way.

Her boots newly heeled, the new compartments filled with her lock picks, she took three more trips through the Portal system, just to be sure, until she finally returned to Lalwani.

One of Creass' transports was parked not far away from the Portal, concealed but ready to be flown. The pilot, sat half asleep and drunk, snapped to shocked attention when she appeared. Ignoring he's half-hearted attempts at excuses for his inebriated state, she climbed into the transport vessel's pilot seat herself and powered up the vessel. That the pilot was in such a 'relaxed' state, told her that nothing big had occurred on Lalwani in her absence. Not that it was her concern anymore anyway.

She flew the transport vessel to the Lalwani base with practiced ease and landed it on the tiny concealed platform outside the main entrance to the base. The guards on duty stood taller at her arrival, as they always did, but otherwise they ignored her. She always came and went from the base by her own timetable, so all her return now would spark would be a flurry of messages through the security staff, warning each other that she would be appearing at their stations soon.

Striding into the cold base, it felt as if she had been away far longer. The long hollowed out corridors no longer felt heavy and oppressive as before. The cold, which formerly had reminded her far too strongly of her old chilling memories of her people, now simply felt empty. She could not wait to leave.

However, she made herself do her usual route through the base to assess the base's situation. The guards all nodded to her as she passed by, all very obviously having been warned of her approach. She had used to be pleased with that communication, showing that they took her leadership seriously and fearfully even. That they were working together at least and were on their toes. Now however, they seemed rather like children playing the role of warriors. These security men would be best used in a military force, fighting to protect others, not hiding in some underground lair of an unseated criminal leader. Creass' glory days were over, and all of these men knew it. She suspected that once she left, a few of these guards would too. But, that was not her problem.

One last corner brought her to the entrance of the security room, its bulletproof glass door stood partly open, which was completely against protocol – idiots. She didn't comment on it though, just wrenched the door open and strode into the small room inside. The guard, warned of her approach by the monitors as well as the radio chatter, was sat attentively in the one seat, his boots up on the side of the desk. He looked up from the monitors as if he had been studying them intently – which cleanly he hadn't if the arrangement of playing squares in front of him was any indication. They knew they weren't supposed to play card games whilst on duty. Clearly with her absence these last few days, standards had lapsed.

"You're back," the guard noted unnecessarily as he laid one arm over the playing squares, thinking she might not have noticed them. She decided not to today.

"Anything to report?" She asked, hearing a cold tone in her voice that she had not felt for some days. She moved past the guard to the shelving units where they kept pads of records and written reports. Or rather she did, the rest barely remembered to be bothered to think about such things. She stood in front of the shelves and considered what to take, as behind her she heard the scattered patter of playing squares being brushed to the floor. Idiot.

"Nothing's happened," the guard reported, not even attempting to hide his bored tone. "Khor came and left, nothing since."

Seeal nodded as she pulled out two stacks of pads. They held the main scan summaries and recordings she had been saving up for reference. Now they would serve her differently. She would keep true to her promise not to compromise Creass, but those who visited here to deal with Creass were another matter.

"Where's Uppal?" She asked as she turned back towards the guard, automatically running her eyes over the screens of camera feeds. All was normal here in Lalwani, and she couldn't see any sign of Uppal on any of the monitors.

"He's off visiting the fields," the guard replied.

She scoffed at that. "Meaning he's drunk more rose beer than normal," she translated.

"There was some harvest festival he went to two days ago," the guard replied with a knowing smile.

Seeal nodded. Well, at least she wouldn't have to worry about facing off against Uppal if she had to fight her way out of here – not that she expected she would...but that would be up to Creass to decide.

"Uppal's got himself a few new pieces of ass in the local village," the guard continued leeringly. Seeal turned away in distaste.

"Let him rot in beer and women," she replied as she made her exit of the security room for the last time.

"Sounds like a good way to go," the guard joked behind her as she shut the glass door behind her, over which she could hear the guard scratching around on the floor inside to gather up his fallen playing squares.

The thick stacks of pads in her hands, she made her way through the final cold corridors of her encircling route through Lalwani to arrive at her own quarters.

The room was one of the smallest in the base, the entrance narrow like a bottleneck. She slipped inside, between the cold walls, with a sense of growing anticipation. There was little in her room, just a bed, a rail set across one corner from which her few clothes hung, and a low bedside table carved out of the bedrock itself.

From under her bed, she pulled out a large bag and set the security pads inside it. Reaching back under the bed, she tugged out a dusty box and slid off the lid. Inside sat a large piece of tech – the backup memory drive of Dreamstation's central computer. She had taken it when they had left the station, suspecting that the information retained inside would one day be useful, or at least in need of protection from any hackings into the station with Creass gone.

She unwrapped the drive carefully, feeling strangely nostalgic for her Dreamstation days, but also aware that this device would now play a vital part in her new life. She had no idea if Creass knew she had taken the drive, since he probably wouldn't see the value of anything on it. But, she knew. Every station scan, list of attendees, and ship docked at the station had been recorded in the Dreamstation central computer, and backed up on this drive. Every name in the manifest was a pseudonym obviously, but she could translate those names easily enough, which of course included one particularly traitorous name. The data on the docked ships would be of particular value, in fact she suspected Robiah would dribble with desire to learn of its existence. Of course, she wouldn't be taking it to him.

She checked over the drive quickly and efficiently, and then wrapped it back up in his protective wrappings. She carefully slid it into one corner of her bag, using her clothes as padding around it, rolling up her jackets, and securing it steady with her spare pair of boots. The drive and pads secured, she added the last of her clothing and tucked her few personal items from out of the bedside table around it. She set the bag on top of her bed and looked once more around her room. Everything was in the bag, save one jacket, which she would wear on her way out. Her entire life here in one bag. It was almost sad, and very telling.

As she secured the bag closed, she heard footsteps approaching down the corridor outside. She knew who it would be.

"Where have you been?" Creass demanded as soon as he entered her doorway.

She glanced over her shoulder towards him as she stood up from the bed.

She had always considered Creass to be a reasonably strongly built man, but as he ambled into the narrow space of her quarters, he now seemed strangely small compared to the massively muscular Elite she had been around these past days. His roughly cragged appearance was a familiar face though, one which had been a near constant part of her life for the past ten years. Despite what he was, and what he had done in his life, she would actually miss him a little bit.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," she told him simply as she reached for her jacket.

"You've been needed here," Creass stated as if he believed it – clearly nothing had happened while she had been away. He liked to feel in control of everything though, which was ironic considering this current life situation. "I don't pay you to wander off whenever you want," he added sternly.

"You told me to take some time away," she reminded him as she slid one arm into a jacket sleeve, "So I did."

"Khor left two days ago," Creass told her angrily. His aggression had never intimidated her, and now, after days with Elite and facing off against Wraith, it seemed even less so.

"Khor won't be coming back," she told him.

Creass' expression froze. "What do you mean?" He demanded.

"He's dead," she replied as she settled her jacket into place over her shoulders.

"Did you kill him?" Creass accused, moving further into her room towards her.

She rolled her eyes as she shook her head. "No," she told him firmly. "One of his own people killed him," which was true, Ulfur had been working for Khor. "Turns out that Khor wasn't even human anyway."

"Wh...what?" Creass asked, confusion replacing his anger in an instant.

She turned and looked at him directly; taking in his hard, lined face, his repeatedly broken nose and fighting scars across his cheeks and jaw. Without Khor, he would now lose what had been, in his mind, his best bet at getting some real power back through dealing the new Quantum. Since leaving Dreamstation, he had made bad decision after bad decision, and she felt a little sorry for him in that. She had warned him from the start of course, but she understood making the wrong choices in life. Problem was, she wasn't sure he could start making some right ones.

"Khor was a Wraith," she told him. "You're going to need to be more careful who you work with in the future."

"A Wraith?" Creass repeated in disbelieving shock. "No way is that true."

"Well, he was," she replied as she turned back to her bag.

"How do you know all this?" Creass demanded. "What have you been doing these past days?"

"I was sorting out some family issues," she replied somewhat honestly. "One of them knew Khor."

Creass frowned. "Family? You?"

She almost smiled at his surprise.

"Hardly worth calling them that," she replied as she picked up the bag's strap.

"I imagine any family of yours could make good workers," Creass considered thoughtfully. A horrific image formed in her mind as to what Ulfur would have become had he been working for Creass!

"There is only one family member and we have parted ways for good now," she told him firmly, cutting off that line of inquiry quickly.

"Dead?" Creass asked.

She looked away as she picked up the weight of her bag. "The Elite are still hunting you, Creass. You need to take my advice from the other day and pull out of here, get rid of the organisation and start up fresh somewhere else. Do something different."

Creass' sharp eyes under frowning brows lowered to her bag. "Where are you going?"

"I'm leaving," she told him as she slung the bag's strap over her head and shoulder, settling the bag's heavy weight against her backside.

Creass frowned deeper. "For how long?"

She turned to face him directly again and looked him straight in the eyes. "I'm not coming back, Creass."

His face transformed instantly, his former frown darkening into brooding anger. "No, you're not leaving."

She didn't reply, just looked at him, let him see her resolve. He had so rarely listened to her when she advised him over the years, but in actions, he had always trusted her.

Creass glowered at her silent answer. "You're _not_ leaving," he insisted.

To so many he was a powerful and intimidating man, angry and dangerous. He had been a street-fighter himself when he was younger, had used his fists to get some power and then power to make himself money. Yet, despite all that, he had had something that had made him stand out for Seeal – he had a strict code. He never killed without reason, was never unnecessarily brutal, and had always taken care of those in his organisation. It was that code that had been why she had accepted his offer of a job so long ago. Among thieves and scum, he had been a prince. Well, maybe a duke, she amended.

"No one leaves, if they do its only one way – dead," Creass stated, his thick arms crossed. Even after all their years working together, he still tried physical intimidation with her. Of course he had no idea of her people, or her life before Dreamstation, so she could forgive him that ignorance, but she would have thought he would have worked out that it wouldn't work with her by now. Besides, compared to the large Elite warriors she had been around recently, his wide shouldered intimidation routine barely registered.

If it came to it, she could easily fight her way out of Lalwani, but she knew she wouldn't have to. Not with Creass, because he had a code, and despite his many wrong choices, he would keep to it.

Presumably.

"Do you remember when you hired me," she asked him calmly, "when you asked me to be your protector, to run security in your new station? And I agreed with only one stipulation on my part?"

She saw his features shift instantly, telling her he did remember the agreement, though she knew he would stubbornly refuse to admit that he did.

"You agreed that when the day came when I chose to leave, that I could walk away," she reminded him. "Free to do so."

He pressed his lips tightly together and she saw his jaw working. She knew he would hate to lose her skills, her protection. She probably knew more about him and his organisation than anyone, and she had been a vital part of his life for over ten years. Losing her would be a risk to him, not only professionally in what she could tell others, but also personally, for she had been his protector for a long time. He had seemed lost since being forced to leave Dreamstation, but she had at least been a constant from those days, and she suspected that by her leaving, he would feel only more isolated. He would be even more vulnerable too, but that was not hers to worry over anymore. He had to face the consequences of his own choices and actions, as they all did. And here was a new choice for him to have to make – to agree with his past oath to her, or to turn on her.

"I protected your back and your station for over ten years, Creass," she reminded him. "I fulfilled my side of our agreement. Are you not going to hold up to yours?" She challenged, watching him carefully.

Had she read him wrong all these years? Would he decide he couldn't let her go?

Her right hand, relaxed at her side, was only a breath away from the gun on her hip. She knew she could get out of here, she would just prefer not to have to hurt him. And, she hoped that she had been right about him, that there _was_ some honour in him. It was a tiny part perhaps, but she had always believed it was there, and after spending so much time with the Elite these past days, she knew more than ever now what honour was like. So, she waited patiently to find out what he would do and if she had been wrong about him all these years.

He let out a heavy sigh and looked aside, breaking the tension, and she knew he wouldn't turn to violence now. Angry and disappointed though he was, she had been right about him, and in that moment she felt a real rush of affectionate appreciation for the man.

"I don't understand, Seeal," he said looking back at her. "Why now? Because of our fight the other day? Because I didn't listen to you?"

She looked at him pointedly. "You haven't listened to me for years."

He shrugged faintly at that truth, his lips pursed but smiling slightly. "You'll be back," he tried next. "You'll miss it. You're the best at what you do."

She shook her head at him. "Not anymore. I'm going to stop being part of the problem."

He frowned at her as if she had said something truly stupid. "And what are you going to do instead? Be a farmer?" He scoffed. "Grow beans and cabbage?"

"No," she replied. "I'm going to start being part of the solution." Which would be all she would tell him.

She settled the bag's strap around her more comfortably and moved forward, heading past him towards the exit to her former quarters. In that brief moment though, as she brushed past him in the narrow space, she held herself ready to react in case he might still try to physically stop her.

But, he didn't do anything other than turn with her as she passed him, watching her as she moved away from him.

"I don't believe you," he said. "Where are you going to go?"

There was no way she was going to tell him that. "I have somewhere I can start from."

"Someone else to work for?" He asked. "Have you had a better offer from someone else?" He almost sounded hurt behind his annoyance with her.

She kept walking down the narrow space of her quarters towards her open door.

"Is there another man who's back you're going to watch instead of mine?" Creass demanded angrily now.

She stopped in the doorway and looked back at him. "He doesn't need his back watching," she told him.

Creass scowled in confusion.

"Then why go?" He asked.

She smiled at the question and at the look of complete shock that passed over Creass' expression. She suspected it was the first time she had ever properly smiled in his presence. In ten years.

"Because I _choose_ to," she told him, and left Lalwani without once looking back.

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TBC


	25. For the Future

**Chapter 25 – For the Future**

The night had fallen over Athos some time ago, blanketing Tjaru in darkness, that even the small pinpricks of artificial lights glowing out of the city's homes was lost within. The cold of winter gave the nights a heavier feel on Athos, which seemed to suggest the feeling to return to home and sleep sooner than in the bright evenings of summer. Yet, though the darkness hung thickly over the Governing Buildings, Father's personal courtyard was cast in a gentle light. Two small lights glowed softly by the pond, powered by the day's stored sunlight to cast just enough light to highlight the water's surface. Teyla, stood on the other side of the glass doors overlooking the courtyard, watched as a few blossom petals fell through the darkness from the weighted tree branches above the pond, to disappear into the darkness of the water. It was a beautiful courtyard, one designed just for Father, a space created for him alone in which to contemplate in peace away from his hectic and important life.

Stood waiting for him to finish his meeting, Charin long ago retired to her bed, Teyla looked out upon his peaceful courtyard. Many times over the years, she had found him in this courtyard, always appearing deep in thought. Everyone left him alone when he was in his courtyard, with the occasional exception of family. And of course Hakon, who still also was very respectful of Father's time of solitude in his personal space, only intruding upon that time when it was vital to interrupt.

Teyla often wondered what Father thought about when sat out in this courtyard alone. She imagined much of his time out there was dedicated to contemplating a difficult negotiation or planning a trading alliance of some sort. Father looked very much towards the future, planning moves far ahead of anyone else, his mind so quick and clever.

Yet, she also suspected, from seeing his face occasionally when he wasn't aware of anyone watching, that sometimes, perhaps more frequently than she would like to know, his thoughts were turned more towards the past. Towards thoughts of Mother.

Teyla had so often seen the strain of grief in Father's face, even now, so many years later. And despite seeing him uncomfortable in those moments, she had actually rather treasured the signs of his clear ongoing love for Mother, even after so much time. He had, and still did, love Mother with all his heart. She had always thought that a lovely, magical thing, one that tied him still with Mother despite all sense.

Yet now, looking out at the courtyard, Teyla felt somewhat different about those moments, for it meant that he had spent so many years in grief, so many years of continuing pain without any hope of ever finding a resolution. Nothing would ever bring Mother back. She had been lost so long ago, that for Teyla she was almost unreal. Mother was a mix of vague images and emotions more than any real solid memories she could draw on. Yet, for Father, it was almost as if he were still partly in the past, waiting for his wife to return to him. Sat by his pond, surrounded by beautiful blossoms and shrubs, fish moving through the water and chimes ringing softly in the air, Teyla could almost imagine such a place could house a watching loving spirit. Perhaps waiting for Father to one day join her. Perhaps that was what Father waited for, for the day when he would finally be with Mother again.

It was a disturbing thought for Teyla, and one that tugged painfully at her heart. It was probably just her own less than peaceful thoughts and feelings behind such thoughts. Father loved life and his work – she saw no pain or dissatisfaction with his life.

Though she sometimes wondered if the pressure of his responsibility weighed upon him. Or did he enjoy it as much as he seemed to most days? From her own ongoing experience of the political world, she suspected the answer was a mix of both. One had to perhaps be inspired to first work in the area of politics, but the complexity and unrelenting demands of that life surely had to weigh even Father down some days. Perhaps thoughts of Mother helped him in such times.

Across the office behind Teyla, Ketra let out a soft cry from her sleep. Teyla looked round over her shoulder to where Ketra lay stretched out across Father's thick rug. So large now, Ketra's outstretched legs reached from one side of the rug to the other. One leg was currently lifted and was pawing gently at the air, as if she were digging in her sleep. Another soft cry became a louder bubble and another leg lifted slightly from the rug, joining the other in a pawing action. Smiling at her pet's dreaming running, Teyla turned back round to the courtyard, and waited for her eyes to adjust back to the darkness outside.

It was late, but the meetings in the governing complex often ran late if a conclusion was hoped for in short order. Father's view was that it was better to run on overnight and allow free time tomorrow. She worried that sometimes he had too many late nights though.

Perhaps she should retire to her quarters for the night, speak to Father early tomorrow...

She knew she wouldn't though, despite the thought. She would prefer to speak with him tonight. Besides, she had had so many late and disturbed nights this week, it would make no difference to her.

Without her permission, her thoughts turned to John, as they still so often did. She wondered if they would ever rest from that. Would she still in years to come find herself sat out in a courtyard alone thinking regretful wistful thoughts of John Sheppard from Earth and Atlantis?

It seemed that as the years passed, that she was left with more and more to quietly contemplate by herself. So many memories, people lost, battles replayed, decisions reconsidered, and thoughts of the future. Yet, these new repetitive thoughts of John were a new addition to the mix. They were achingly painful and oddly addictive. Much like him.

She had known when she had started her affair with him that she would have to leave him. To move forward with her life without her joyful playful lover from another galaxy. For they had both agreed on it, that they were from very different worlds and had different responsibilities. She just wondered now if perhaps it would have been wiser to have never started the affair in the first place. To know how wonderful his company was, to feel his touch, to kiss his lips and share such intimacies, perhaps it would have been easier had she not shared that first kiss with him. A kiss shared up in her quarters here in Tjaru.

She wondered if that was partly the reason why she remained here in Father's office, waiting to talk to him after a meeting he would no doubt be tired from attending.

She looked away from the courtyard back to Ketra again, who now had rolled partly onto her back, her two front legs suspended up in the air, her soft snores filling the office. Teyla did not want to waken her, but-

Movement down the corridor outside Father's office drew her attention. She looked towards the partially open office door and listened intently. She picked Father's voice easily out from the other two. She could not make out the words, but his tone was relaxed and tired.

Then soft footsteps began moving down the corridor towards the office.

Despite having waited here for hours to have this conversation, suddenly the reality of it stuck her fearfully. Surprised by the reaction, she looked away back out into the courtyard and drew on her training. A deep breath held and released slowly, then another. She focused on a soft image in her mind, drawing calm control as she listened to Father's footsteps nearing the door. She could tell from the pace of his approach that he knew she was here, for he always walked quicker towards family.

She wanted this discussion, this would be her decision, yet as the moment approached she felt almost regretful. It would not change her decision, but that aching feeling in her heart returned, so strong that she was surprised it was not a bright light glowing out of her chest reflected in the glass wall before her.

To her right, the office door was gently pushed open and she looked round to see Father filling the doorway, a bright smile across his face.

She could do this. It was the right decision.

"Teyla," Father smiled wider, "It is good to see you, and that you waited up." She turned towards him as he approached her, his hands lifting to her shoulders as she did the same in return.

"If you are too tired to speak..." she offered as they touched foreheads gently.

"I _always_ have time for you," he replied as he squeezed her shoulders and lent his forehead against hers with a little more pressure before he pulled back. "You look tired."

A little surprised at the comment, she smiled at him. "I believe those should be my words to you."

He grinned back, his eyes indeed looking tired, but bright. "Then we are both tired. Let us sit," he suggested, turning towards the two chairs and the table on which a selection of small foods had been left for her an hour or so ago. "I am hungry as well as tired. Hakon is ordering us some fresh tea."

Ketra rolled onto her side on the rug, now awake but bleary eyed as she looked up adoringly at Father.

"Hello beautiful, Ketra," Father said softly to her as he ran both his hands over the dragon's head and off her ears. Ketra purred softly as he repeated the caress.

"She has almost outgrown this rug," Teyla commented as she sat back down in the chair she had sat in whilst talking with Charin.

"Yes, but it seems to me that her legs are longer rather than her body thicker now. You are more muscle than baby fat now, aren't you beautiful Ketra," Father cooed to Ketra as he scratched the dragon's side. Ketra purred louder.

Teyla chuckled as she rolled her eyes. "I suspect that when she stays here that you spoil her."

Father smiled as he stood up from Ketra. "I do not know what you mean."

Ketra watched him move away to the other chair with an almost human look of disappointment. Teyla reached out and rubbed her hand on Ketra's flank that was close to her chair, and a soft purr was her reward.

The office door opened again behind Father and Hakon entered, carrying a tray of tea balanced on top of his computer tablet.

"Hakon, I told you to go to bed," Father uttered from where he had just been about to sit down. "The night service could have brought this," he added as he met Hakon halfway across the office and took the tray from him.

"Everyone is in bed and the night kitchen staff are all supplying tea to the visiting delegation following the meeting, so I thought it best to bring you tea myself," Hakon replied as he wiped down one edge of his tablet. "Honoured Elite," he added with a slight bow to her.

"Good eve, Hakon," she replied with a smile. "Thank you for bringing our tea."

"We could have made tea ourselves," Father muttered as he put the tray down by the food selection. He always became a little irritable when he was tired.

"Yes, Torren," Hakon replied with a slight roll of his eyes, at which Teyla smiled.

Father, having seen her smile, looked suspiciously round at Hakon as he sat down, but his assistant simply smiled politely down at him.

"Is there anything else you need?" Hakon asked with a slightly teasing tone.

Father looked up at him with narrowed eyes. "Would you like to sit with me and _Teyla_?" He asked. "You remember _Teyla_, my daughter, who you kissed when you were-"

It was an old running teasing joke of Father's that always served to embarrass Hakon in front of her.

"Good night then," Hakon interrupted quickly, his cheeks faintly pink. "Honoured Elite. Torren."

"Good night, Hakon," Teyla replied.

"Get some sleep, Hakon," Father ordered as Hakon headed to the door. "That is an order. No staying up writing up the meeting report."

"Yes, Torren," Hakon replied with a tone that was perfectly balanced between agreement and sarcastic annoyance.

Father smiled as he got his hands on the tea pot before she could pick it up. As the office door closed across the room, he picked the pot and began to fill the first cup. "One day I will hear him call you by your given name."

"Why is that so important to you?" Teyla asked as she set the next cup under the tea pot's spout for him to fill.

"Because it embarrasses him," Father replied with a grin.

She narrowed her eyes at him as she picked up her cup of tea and sat back. She wondered if it was coincidence that it was clearly her favourite evening tea. "I think it is because you see him as family rather than simply as your assistant."

Father focused his attention on examining the selection of food on the table. "Of course he is family; he all but grew up with you and Zabetha here."

"He has spent more of his life with you than I have," Teyla considered as she watched Father take a large bite of a finger length slice of sweet sticky cake.

However, despite the pleasure the cake must have given him, his expression turned serious at her comment, though his attention remained on the food as he selected another piece of cake. "I suppose that he has, but the same could be said of many who work here in the complex."

She nodded as he sat back in his chair, aware that she had injected the conversation with some of her previous prowling overly thoughtful energy. His eyes, as he sat comfortably in his chair, settled on her with a renewed focus that told her he had not missed the significance of her mood. As with Charin, Teyla suspected he had already seen that something was on her mind, but unlike Charin, he would not push her to speak of what it was.

"I do not think of Mino as family, that is for sure," he added as a gentle joke before he took a bite of his new piece of cake.

She smiled, as the joke required, and nodded. "I meant nothing by it than simply to note the close relationship between you and Hakon."

Father frowned slightly, just a fraction, but she saw it as he dropped his gaze to his tea and took a sip. His eyes lifted back up to her with a more controlled expression, but that assessing nature to them remained.

"Did the meeting end favourably?" Teyla found herself asking.

"It did," he replied as he ate the last of the small slice of cake. "It took quite some work, but it has been achieved."

"Good," she replied, trying to remember exactly what the meeting had been about.

"Zabetha's meeting continues, but I suspect that will end soon as well," he added. "I heard of the success of the treaty with Atlantis."

She nodded. "Yes, you must be pleased."

Father nodded, that frown creeping back across his brow as he studied her. "It also took quite some time to achieve, and I understand that it was the Military Council that finally pushed it through, with several stipulations with Rosenthal."

"As was expected," she replied, the subject feeling a little sensitive. "I was not in Atlantis for the last day of negotiations." Why was it that she felt it important that Father knew she had not been in Atlantis the entire time, with John?

"I was sorry to hear of the loss of Honoured Elite Kari," he said with a sorrowful expression. "She was a most admirable warrior."

Teyla nodded her agreement; the heavy feelings over Kari' end threatening to rise up through her again. Beating it all down, she took a breath and set her cup on the table. "I need to speak with you about something very important."

"I had guessed as much, Daughter," Father smiled. The circles under his eyes looked particularly dark this evening.

"I will shortly be presenting some new initiatives to the other Elite and then the Military Council," she began, feeling the need to be clear that she was focused on work. "The Wraith have demonstrated some new worrying behaviours that mean that the Elite will need to have an increased role within the Alliance."

Father frowned openly this time, his expression and demeanour darkening. He understood the significance of what she as saying. "Should I be concerned for Athos?" He asked.

"Of all the worlds, ours of increased numbers of Seekers should be the least concerned," she assured him.

His expression shifted again. "You fear there are Wraith inside Alliance territory?"

"It is possible," she shared with him. "This is not public knowledge and must remain quiet." He nodded immediately. "The Hive responsible has been destroyed, and presumably all of its numbers have been killed, but it is possible that the new practices may have spread."

"There have been tales of Wraith disguising themselves as humans before," Father replied, his interest in the food and his tea forgotten.

"They were far less...convincing as the latest example," she informed him. "But, as I said, it is likely that the practice has been stopped with the destruction of the Hive involved."

Father nodded and lifted his tea slowly to his lips, his mind clearly working away. "Are you planning then to base Elite on each Alliance planet?"

"Not necessarily at all times, but there are those among our number who are injured, in training, or recuperating, who could visit planets, keep connections strong with Enforcement and military bases."

Father nodded. "That seems a good suggestion. I do not see that there will be much objection from world leaders; if anything I suspect they will welcome the move. The High Council however..."

She nodded. "They will see it, and our planned station on Aria, as a threat."

Father's eyebrows lifted at the news of Aria. "True, especially considering the way the treaty with Atlantis had to be pushed through."

"At least Rosenthal has been appeased," she considered.

"For now, but promise of possible military contracts and the Political Marriage with a Satedan in a powerful trading position will make it obvious what happened to pass the treat through," he added.

"You believe there are other opposing voices who will not be pleased with Rosenthal?" She asked.

Father sighed and sat forward to pick up another piece of cake. "There are always opposing voices when someone gains and others do not."

Teyla nodded, feeling suddenly tired in an entirely new way. "For some time you have spoken of your fears of the cracks forming within the Alliance," she said and he nodded. "But it was only while watching the treaty negotiations that I realised how bad the situation is. So many in powerful positions were bickering and forming opinions on military matters of which they have no understanding."

Father nodded solemnly as he picked up the tea pot and swirled the contents gently. "At least the Military Council is in place now to control the fleet and the outward push of the borders."

"Yes, but it will not be enough."

He looked up at her from the tea pot with a look of surprise, poised in pouring more tea into his cup.

"Do you remember when I was young, when I wanted to leave to train with the Elite and you did not wish me to go?" She asked.

"Of course," he replied as he lowered his eyes and poured the tea into his cup.

"You told me at that time that I had to make a choice between a life of service as a warrior or a life in service to our people."

"I remember," he replied as he set the pot back down onto the table. "I did not realise that you did."

"Your opinion and advice has always been important to me," she told him honestly.

With a soft smile he sat back in his chair, his cup of tea held in both hands. She sensed that he was aware that she was building up to something, and was clearly patiently waiting to see what it would be.

"I chose to be a warrior," she said unnecessarily.

"And a powerful one you have become," he added with a proud looking smile.

"But, I think that perhaps it is not as simple as you described – being either warrior or Athosian."

"No, not in your case perhaps," he replied with a soft expression. "Charin always said that you were meant for great things, that a life on Athos would not be enough for you. You have proven her right, as she always is," he added with a pointed smile.

She smiled too, but to hear him speak of Charin's wisdom as always correct, made her for a moment reconsider what she was about to do.

She would not be ruled by soft feelings and hopefulness though, not when she had duties and responsibilities to focus on. It was time to stop slipping between worlds and instead stand boldly in both.

"For most of my life," she said carefully, "I have trained to be an Elite, to fight the Wraith, to protect not only our people, but as many others as I can. But, that will make no difference if the Alliance, if all our peoples, start breaking the bonds apart from within. It is time that we focus on those bonds, and that includes the Elite, for we are a part of the Alliance, not just a guard on the doorstep. We have more to offer than killing. And some of us may choose to cement bonds further within the Alliance."

Father's expression froze. With his quick mind, she suspected he had already predicted her conclusion, but she forged onwards, making her reasoning clear.

"The Alliance must be saved, must be protected, as Elite have always done. But, I am not just an Elite, none of us are. We are people from different worlds, but with a unity of purpose, which can be a reflection of the greater good of the Alliance. I believe the Elite have a responsibility to not only show that, but to uphold it. We reflect the highest ideals of the Alliance, we are respected and if we show the Alliance what needs to be done, then perhaps that will make people see what needs to be repaired."

Father nodded slightly, but his expression remained still, his tea steaming up across his controlled features.

"We will interact with the people across the Alliance worlds more, work with Enforcement and the Investigation Division, have a greater presence on Aria, and grown stronger links with planetary security. And some of us, of which I suspect I know three others so far, have something else to offer as well."

Father continued to say nothing, but she knew now that he knew what her conclusion would be.

"I am not just an Elite, I am an Athosian, and perhaps for the first time, I can truly serve our people as well as the Alliance as a whole. For I am your eldest daughter, an Elite warrior, and a member of the Military Council, and that can have value to not only you and our people, but to the Alliance."

"You serve our people each day, Teyla," he interrupted softly. "All the Elite do, you protect us all, in these new possible roles as well as out there battling the Wraith face-to-face."

"Yes, but I can do more," she replied. "I have a duty to our people."

"You already fulfil your duty admirably," he argued gently.

"But this will be more. It will be a link between our people and another within in the Alliance, through an Elite warrior."

"It is not necessary."

"It is," she insisted. "I choose to serve our people in any way I can, and it will mean no major change to my life."

"It _will_ change your life, Teyla. It is a contract that will change politics and how you live your life."

"The contract can be adapted to take into consideration that I am Elite, you know that," she objected. "Do not pretend that you cannot see the massive political pull this will have for you and our people. We will be the first to unite the Elite with such a contract within the Alliance."

He looked away, his fingers scratching one side of his chin thoughtfully.

"Imagine the offers," she tempted him.

He smiled and shook his head. "What a leader of our people you would have been." He sighed and set his tea down on the table and regarded her thoughtfully.

"And Atlantis?" He asked.

Thrown slightly by his question, and perhaps the subtext which he wasn't voicing, she schooled her features as she glanced down to Ketra and then back to him. "The treaty has been signed, we have been successful in that regard. I need to focus back on my work with the Elite. The outer Lantana battle still rages and there are larger plans soon to be initiated that will need my attention."

And that would be all she would say.

Father looked away, not giving away any indication that he had meant more to his question than simply asking for her status in helping him negotiate with Atlantis. The trading agreement between Atlantis and Athos had been agreed some time ago, so there was no official reason for her presence anymore. The non-aggression treaty between Atlantis and the Alliance had been something she had worked on with Father, John and Mr Woolsey. It was completed now though, and therefore there was no reason for her to visit Athos so frequently.

No need to have an excuse to be here during John's visits anymore, for all that had to change.

"There will have to be a deadline in keeping with my duties with the Elite," she continued. "So, I think it best that we work quickly on putting out the announcement and I would appreciate your assistance in the contract's wording."

"Of course," Father replied. "If you are sure of this."

"Yes, I am sure," she stated, and took a breath to speak the actual words. "I wish to put myself forward within the Alliance worlds for an offer of Political Marriage."

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On to the final chapter...


	26. Epilogue

**Part**: 26/26  
**Note:** And finally, here is the last chapter. It's been a very long fic, and somewhat different from most, but this part of the story has been told and I hope that its overriding arc will now start to make sense. As I mentioned at the start of the first chapter of this fic, this has only been an Act One of this new part of the story of this AU John and Teyla, and the Alliance and its Elite. I hope you have enjoyed this ride so far, and yes, this of course means I will be writing more in this series, for there is SO much more of the story to share... Thank you to everyone reading for sticking with this fic and its larger Alliance saga. Long live Atlantis and John/Teyla. Wedj x

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**Chapter 26 - Epilogue**

As always, the bunker smelt dank and cold as Kolya entered it, stepping down the bare unadorned staircase into the depths of the bunker. Water dripped from the edges of the hatch above his head as he descended deeper into the ground, the sentries stood at strict attention below finding a few extra inches of height as they stretched their spines in respect.

Above the sunlight cut sharply across the bare empty room as the hatch was slowly levered closed, slamming away the last of the light and sealing them into the hidden base. It had never been his favourite of bases to stay in, but of all his hidden bunkers and safe locations, this was perhaps the best concealed. No one in the Genii Confederation knew about this place, which had been in operation long before he had been so traitorously dismissed by the current twisted government of Cowen's. Cowen knew nothing of Kolya's work here, and he never would.

The day when Cowen would be kicked from his high pedestal was fast approaching, his weak grip of power on Kolya's people tenuous and ready to be broken.

In his many years of battlefield experience and political handling, Kolya had long ago learnt the importance of patience. It was the most patient and quiet of predators that were the most successful, and soon, very soon, all his years of careful preparation would come to fruition. And on that day, he would leap forward with the speed of the fastest predator alive to take control of the flagging weakness of the Genii Confederation.

His people had once been a powerful, commanding legion, but now they had weak politically greedy children ruling them. The Genii were born to fight, to rule, and to crush the Wraith, and Kolya would see his people return to those days. For the Alliance was rocking on its foundations, and it would take Genii leadership to bring it back to the glory days of unified purpose and control. Those currently in the hallways of power in the Confederation where not the right people for that purpose, but Kolya knew who would be. It had taken patience, and would take more to come, but one day soon he would take control of the Confederation and bring the Genii and the Alliance back on strict track.

"The patrol was clear, Commander?" A voice greeted him down the dank corridor through which he strode. The captain stood tall and straight in his uniform, his proud strong shoulders showing the thick muscle all Kolya's army trained to maintain every day. That he too maintained. There was no weakness here.

"All is clear, how are the latest results?" Kolya asked as he reached the captain's side.

"The latest batch are all the same," he reported as they turned off through a side archway. Ahead a new smell lingered in the air over the damp mould and gathered dust. Even after all these years, the smell of Wraith stink still felt like an assault on Kolya's nose.

"No advances at all?" Kolya clarified as he glanced at the partially functioning electronic pad the captain showed him as they took another turn down a side corridor. Growls and roars of anger vibrated against the solid walls ahead of them.

"The serum has no effect," the captain reported. "The Chief thinks we need a new full genetic sequencer to solve the problem."

"The Chief can find a new state of the art sequencer available outside the Alliance and then he can have it," Kolya replied sternly. "Until then, tell him to make do. The Atlanteans have solved the genetic sequencing, so will we."

"Yes, Commander," the captain replied as he pulled the pad out of view.

Another loud growl from up ahead was followed by sound of flesh slamming against metal bars.

"The new test subject is less than restrained," the captain reported unnecessarily.

Kolya ignored the comment as he strode into the first chamber and stopped. The wall of cells smelt of their usual mix of fearful Wraith sweat and unwashed clothing. Two cells down to the right a Wraith's arm tore out between metal bars towards one of Kolya's guards, snarling and spitting in rage as it tried to reach the man and his tempting life-force. Kolya's man simply ignored the violent attack, stood at a perfect distance away to be well out of the creature's reach.

Kolya approached, taking in the huddled mass of another Wraith in a passing cell, its body starved and its mind untangling. Left long enough without food, even the most stubborn of Wraith turned into a weakened lunatic, babbling nonsense and scrabbling around for even the insects that lived in the cracks in the walls for nourishment.

"Where is this new one from?" Kolya asked the guard ahead of him.

"Caught him running raids on a moon, stealing children and the elderly from the local villages," the guard reported without taking his eyes off the Wraith. Kolya was impressed.

"Chief has taken his samples?" Kolya asked.

"Yes, Commander," the guard reported with a slight nod, though still keeping his eyes on the Wraith. The creature had one cheek pressed up against the bars, its angry features twisted with the pressure to try and reach out just a little further to reach them.

"Release me," it spat.

"Have you used all methods on it?" Kolya asked, ignoring the Wraith completely.

"Yes, it goes down, but broke select pieces of equipment when we got it-" the guard started.

"Kill it," Kolya cut him off and turned away. "We have enough for the research, and its body will be more useful to the Chief when it's dead."

"Yes, Commander," the guard replied, and Kolya almost suspected he had heard a touch of pleasure within the professional tone.

Behind him, the condemned Wraith snarled again, cursing the guard and promising death to him and all his people if it wasn't released. They were all used to such threats here. They meant nothing. In this base, the Wraith had no power. Kolya and his people were in control, and given time they would learn all the Wraith's secrets - healing, telepathic and technology. Given time, Kolya was certain all could be learnt from the Wraith, and hopefully in time to see their kind completely slaughtered.

"Use the new Litan weapons," he added over his shoulder to the guard. "They arrived this morning?"

"Yes, Commander," the captain replied at his side.

"They had better be as intact as I was promised," Kolya muttered.

"The contact is usually good," the captain replied.

"We'll see," Kolya uttered as they neared the exit from the cell chamber.

Only, Kolya paused and glanced to the cell just to the left of the exit. Imprisoned inside, the tallest and oldest of their captured Wraith stood in the gloom. Its eyes caught some of the artificial lighting, casting a strange light to the creature's sharp, too intelligent gaze.

Of all the Wraith held here over the years, this one was one of the smartest and therefore most dangerous. Kolya held the male's direct eye contact, knowing the creature likely wished with every alien cell in its body that it could drain him dry of his life. Kolya respected such determination, even in a Wraith, for it was no danger to him. Kolya ruled this Wraith's life. At a whispered whim he could have its life snuffed out, and it knew that.

And today, looking at its old sharp eyes, he again considered killing it. Every day he visited the chamber he considered it, which he suspected the creature knew as well. Yet, it looked out at him with direct eyes and no threats. It was a battle of unspoken will and power each day he was in this bunker. For here, Kolya was a divine ruler, owning everyone's life and deaths as his own.

All that mattered to him was usefulness, and this Wraith, as predatory and intelligent as it was, had value to Kolya. It was usually very compliant with the feeding experiments and it had provided some useful technology information from time to time. Chief suspected it was one of the oldest they had found, tens of thousands of years old, and yet still here, appearing tall and strong despite its malnourishment in recent years.

Kolya wondered what it thought of him, what it thought of its own life after so many centuries lived.

"Commander?" a voice called out though, drawing his attention away, but not his gaze. Kolya kept his eyes on the Wraith.

"What is it?" He demanded as he triggered open the radio link attached to his belt.

"We have an incoming call," the disembodied voice reported from the radio.

Kolya looked away from the Wraith. "On my way."

With the captain behind his shoulder, Kolya made his way swiftly through the rest of the bunker, heading deeper into the nerve centre of the base. The large main chamber was dedicated to monitoring and communications, and it was currently a flurry of activity as he entered.

"Report," he demanded.

"We have a direct call bounced in via two of our satellite links," someone reported.

Kolya frowned. Only those who worked for him could do that, and he wasn't expecting any communications. In fact, he had ordered a strict silence to the base while he was here.

"Code?"

"A recent code from the last cycle," the man reported.

Kolya inhaled gruffly. Someone had acquired one of his people's codes from last week, before they had changed the codes on their regular rotation.

"Where does the call originate from?" He asked sternly as he watched hands moving over dials to find out everything they could tell him.

"The location's beacon in the signal is intact," one woman reported as she studied a monitor. Whoever was attempting to contact Kolya had not attempted to conceal their location, which was telling in itself.

"Where from?" Kolya repeated his question.

"Talmedge," someone else reported with some surprise in their voice.

Kolya let out an annoyed breath and looked at his captain. "Find out how he got that code, Captain. Now."

The man nodded, his face paler than before. Kolya turned from him and moved to the far wall of the chamber, where a large Alliance Military screen had been spliced into the base's communications systems. Below it, an outdated Genii camera stood ready.

"Put him on the screen," he ordered.

The screen fuzzed as the image slowly appeared, the connection between the base's system and the Military screen not quite interfacing naturally, but the picture soon stabilised to reveal the brightly coloured image of a bald man.

"Yes, Pyaban?" Kolya asked before the image had even begun to clarify.

"Commander Kolya," Pyaban replied, smiling out of the screen with his flushed cheeks and sparkling jewellery. Behind the information trader, lush vibrant colours of his citadel shone in sharp contrast to the dull greys and browns of the bunker. "It is good of you to speak with me."

Kolya didn't bother to ask where Pyaban had gotten the codes, the trader would want information in return and Kolya had no intention of playing into the trader's game.

"And you being so busy at the moment," Pyaban continued. "Running around whispering fearful words in so many ears."

Kolya ignored the less than subtle and unsurprising discovery that Pyaban knew about some of his schemes. It was obvious enough, given Pyaban's profession.

"And plotting assassinations in Atlantis of all places," Pyaban added, surprisingly Kolya a little.

The news of the failure of the assassination attempt had been disappointing, but not all that surprising for him. He would have been more disappointed if Sheppard had fallen so easily.

"I see you have more ears than ever of your own working for you," Kolya finally replied.

Pyaban shrugged and smiled in that annoyingly affable way of his. Everything about the man was soft and yielding, but his mind and connections had been vital for Kolya. But, Pyaban had never contacted him directly like this before. Clearly there was something the man wanted, which was interesting.

"In my line of work, I hear all kinds of interesting things," Pyaban replied pointedly.

Which meant that he had information to trade, which again wasn't exactly a revelation for Kolya.

"What do you want, Pyaban?" Kolya asked as he glanced aside to the monitors, watching his people fully scanning the link to Talmedge. Watching them also served to show Pyaban that Kolya was bored with the conversation already.

"I have something to trade which I believe you will be particularly interested in."

Kolya sighed openly as he set his thumbs through his holster belt. "Oh?"

"Now, now, Commander, no freebies," Pyaban joked pathetically. "No information until we reach an agreement of trade."

"I am busy, Pyaban," Kolya replied looking away to the monitors again.

"You will want to hear what I have to give you," Pyaban tempted. "Which no one else will likely ever be able to inform you of so accurately."

Kolya glanced back at the screen. "Clearly there is something that _you_ want, so tell me what it is so that we can move this conversation along."

"A man of action, of course," Pyaban replied with what appeared to be an attempt at condescension – as if Pyaban's opinion of him mattered to Kolya in the least! "Very well, I feel that I have information unique enough for me to trade a very vital piece of useful information from you."

Kolya waited.

Pyaban leaned forward slightly in his seat, which was a display of intensity that was unusual for him. "I understand that there are events already unfolding within the Genii Confederation, and that soon enough Cowen will fall. I wish to know which man will take his place, which man you are backing into the seat of power."

Kolya was a little surprised at the direct question. Pyaban was usually more subtle and manipulative. For him to come out and ask such a direct request of something highly significant to Kolya's plans was a surprise. It also told Kolya that his ultimate plan was going as undetected on the Genii homeworld as he had hoped, for even Pyaban wasn't sure who would step forward for power.

"And why would I agree to tell you who that may be?" Kolya asked out of interest.

"Because what I offer in return will be so very insightful for you, and _personal_," Pyaban replied cryptically.

"If I have no idea what this information you claim to have entails, then why should I reveal such vital information to you?"

"Because I need it for trade," Pyaban replied simply.

"So you can inform those I would not wish to know?" Kolya scoffed. "I do not think so, Pyaban. This conversation is over."

He turned to his people and lifted his hand to signal to them to cut off the link, but Pyaban's face abruptly filled the entire screen.

"Commander," the trader insisted quickly. "Trust me, we have traded so successfully for many years. I would not undermine your work, since it will perhaps benefit me in the future as well. And this information I have is a one time offer. An offer of information that only certain very specific parties would know, and none will ever tell you."

Kolya frowned with impatience at the man. "Speak plainly or not at all, Pyaban."

Pyaban's face pulled back in the screen, allowing the opulent colours of his home back into view. "This is an offer not meant simply for my needs, for this is something I know will be important to you...about the fate of one we both knew and dealt with. A woman of fine beauty and a cruel mind."

Kolya's full attention fixed on Pyaban.

Iketani.

A beautiful creature indeed, in body, skills, and mind. A powerful and deceitful thing that had wormed herself into his mind a little too deeply. Of all the people he had met in his life, she had been the most impressively intelligent and interesting. If she had been Genii, he suspected nothing would have stopped his people from ruling the galaxy. She had been made to rule, to fight, control and manipulate.

And with her body, she had enslaved many men and women.

He had never caved to that rule, had instead enjoyed an amusing and satisfying enough game of control and dominance with her, had satisfied himself in her and watched her try to play him. She had been a most wondrous creature, twisted and misdirected as she had become at times, she had been the best that he had seen come out of the Elite.

Except, she had moved too strongly, too quickly, and her own appetites had lead to betrayal by her own. She had used seduction and blackmail to control, whereas she should have used respect and power as he did.

If they had been able to work together properly...

But, she had played her final game incorrectly, thinking with that fast body of hers and not with her logical mind. Revenge had tainted her, poisoned her into acting irrationally, and unsurprisingly the Elite had caught up with her. When the news of her demise had reached him not that long ago, it had not been a surprise to him, but on hearing confirmation of what he had known would occur, he had felt something he hadn't felt in a long time.

Regret.

"I already know the Elite struck her down," he told Pyaban, "as most are aware."

"Mmm, yes, but the details, of those involved, I believe that perhaps you might wish to know their names."

Kolya strictly controlled his expression, not giving away anything of the annoyingly accurate response Pyaban was reading inside him. He did want to know who had killed her, how had been involved, but he would not be tempted into revenge as she had been.

He had no reason to want that, to take out his lingering thoughts of her on those who had killed her. She had angered the Elite, so what else was going to be the outcome other than their own revenge upon her? It had been her own doing.

There was no reason for him to feel anything more than that.

Other than perhaps a professional interest, and the thought that had it been him who had been killed that perhaps someone might seek to avenge him.

That perhaps part of him was a little resentful at who had killed her, who had sunk blade or bullet into her beautiful flesh to end her life.

"Trust me when I say," Pyaban added, "That _you_ will want to know what I know."

And that was Pyaban's danger, right there. Damn him and his insightfulness. Kolya had no idea how the trader knew that Iketani had affected Kolya more than most, but clearly he did.

That didn't mean Kolya had to show it. "And if I have no interest in what you tell me?" He asked.

"Oh you will, Commander," Pyaban replied immediately. "And if not, then I will offer something else in turn, perhaps something about those Litan weapons you ordered through a mutual party."

Kolya narrowed his eyes at the screen. It wasn't like Pyaban to give away something like that, and certainly not to offer further information if what he traded didn't satisfy.

Considering the matter, it did not really mean anything for Pyaban to know who would take Cowen's place, for Cowen's replacement wouldn't hold power for long. Pyaban could sell the information to an enemy party, but what would that serve him with Kolya? Even if the coup didn't go as planned, Kolya had another lined up if necessary. Making this trade would not risk him much really.

"Very well, Pyaban," he announced. "Let us trade."

"Excellent," Pyaban replied with a happy grin, his hands clapping together once in a sharp slap and flash of overly adorned rings. "Tell me who will push Cowen from his mighty pedestal."

"Ladon Radim," Kolya informed him.

Pyaban's expression became more thoughtful as he nodded. "The scientist, a good choice. Thank you, Commander."

Kolya nodded faintly and waited.

"And in return I will share all I have on the last moments of our past mutual friend's death, but I suspect the information you will be most personally interested in is the fact that another party was involved in her end. Pulled in by her true enough, but who fought her directly and was there at her killing."

Kolya frowned, surprised by the turn of the information. He had not expected this.

"A party who I know that you take great interest in, being that he is not of the Alliance, or of our galaxy at all."

Kolya felt his body freeze, as if in a heightened moment of battle.

Pyaban smiled faintly as he watched through the screen, clearly enjoying his moment of revelation.

"Tell me," Kolya ordered, though he already knew who it would be; a man who had thwarted two of Kolya's past plans now, as well as Iketani' own. A man who had shot Kolya through the chest, the scar of which seemed especially sore in such damp places as this bunker in which he was forced to hide like a ground rat, while those from another galaxy enjoyed the luxury of the City of the Ancestors.

Fire burned up through him, forming new plans, new directions that would allow him to find some vengeance for himself and for Iketani.

"His name," Kolya insisted again of Pyaban's pleased smile.

"Major John Sheppard of Atlantis."

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THE END


End file.
